


Two Becomes Three

by WeasleyLover10



Series: The Story of Amelia and Aaron [10]
Category: American (US) Actor RPF
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Smut, whoo boy is there angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-13 15:07:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 23,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28780248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WeasleyLover10/pseuds/WeasleyLover10
Summary: In which Aaron has a date, Amelia is an ass, and two becomes three
Relationships: Aaron Tveit/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Story of Amelia and Aaron [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1834342
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. I Want You Bad As Ever

**Author's Note:**

> Same rules apply!
> 
> Enjoy the angst and a long one!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This bad boy was so long that AO3 got mad at me. So enjoy two chapters!

Amelia was starving. She was very clearly in the second trimester because she felt like she could eat a horse every day. But Aaron, somewhat ironically, had become the responsible one in their relationship and was trying to make sure she didn’t binge eat but instead ate regularly.

“Here, babe.”

Aaron handed her a plate containing a cheddar grilled cheese and apple slices.

“Thanks, Aaron.”

He kissed her cheek and joined her couch, albeit on the other side. She watched him as he munched on an apple himself.

“What?”

She bit through the crisp apple slice, eyeing him with a teasing look.

“Make sure you have the makeup team cover that hickey.”

He put a hand against his neck, self-consciously.

“Dammit, Amelia.”

She giggled.

“Hey. Don’t complain. You’re finally getting some again.”  
She said, finishing her lunch.

He readjusted himself so that they were face to face. He just wanted to kiss that smug look away.

“So are you, lady.”

“True.”

She pecked his lips and pulled away quickly, but he wasn’t satisfied. He tangled a hand in his sweatshirt, which she had taken to wearing to accommodate her larger bump, and yanked her to him. She let out a gasp at his forwardness, which he used as an opportunity to slid his tongue into her mouth.

Their kissing grew more heated as he slid his hand under the sweatshirt, over her bump, and toward her chest. She was mewling noisily as his hand cupped her breast when her phone dinged with a message.

“Leave it.” He growled.

“That’s Mary.”

He pressed another bruising kiss to her lips when his own phone began to ring.

“Fuck.” He swore.

“That’s Elin’s ringtone.” She said breathlessly.

Aaron took a deep breath as he tried to collect himself.

“Hello?”

While Aaron answered the phone, Amelia checked hers.

“Oh, God,” Amelia said.

All Mary had sent was a link to Broadway Gossip.

“Are you fucking kidding me? Why do people even give a shit about us?” Aaron snarled.

Based on his reaction, she had a feeling about what she was going to see.

**Double-A Baby Watch!**

**The rumors appear to be true! Our favorite Broadway couple is expecting! Aaron and Amelia Tveit were spotted while out to lunch yesterday prior to the evening Moulin Rouge performance. After much speculation, Amelia’s bump was clearly on display, and it’s obvious the long-time couple is expecting a bundle of joy. Rumors leaked a little over a month ago, prompting the couple to release a joint statement vehemently asking for privacy. It also didn’t help when Amelia abruptly left the Moulin Rouge production not long after furthering pregnancy speculation. Neither Broadway star has responded to our requests for comment.**

She examined the photo of her and Aaron hand in hand. She hated it, but the rag was right. There was no hiding her bump. At least her outfit was cute.

“Just handle it, Elin.”

He turned to Amelia and brushed her hair behind her ear.

“Yeah, she’s fine. Don’t worry. Ok. Thanks, E. Bye.”

Aaron hung up and pulled Amelia into his arms, so they were cuddling.

“Elin was worried about you.”

“I’m fine. We knew this was going to happen eventually.”

Aaron pushed his own hair out of his face as he kissed her temple.

“I don’t understand why people give a shit about us. Like we live in New York. This isn’t Los Angeles.”

“At least the market for Broadway gossip rags is small. Thank God, I decided to dress cute yesterday.”

“You always look cute.”

“Flatterer.”

Aaron nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck and placed a hand on her bump.

“I’m serious. You’ve been glowing lately.”

She moved her head to look at him.

“It’s the sex.” She said, teasing him.

“Ha!” He laughed.

He craned his head down and kissed her deeply as she smirked.

* * *

Amelia sucked in as Mary zipped her up. She finally took a breath when Mary tapped her shoulder, indicating that she was done. Amelia turned to face her manager and fluffed her hair.

“Well?”

“You look beautiful. As always.”

Amelia was dressed in a long black Oscar de la Renta gown, sans the inevitably necessary heels. The Tony’s were finally happening now that everything had been rescheduled. And Amelia was just ecstatic to rejoin her Bohemian family, especially as they were scheduled to perform as a cast.

“Alright, let’s go see what Christian the Composer thinks.”

She made her way out of their bedroom and into the living room, which was no easy feat given the tight designer gown. As she finally neared the room, she could hear the mix of babbling and singing emanating from the living space.

“Wow,” Aaron said when she entered the room.

“What do you think?”

“You look amazing.”

Amelia was incredibly proud of herself as she watched her husband’s eyes light up. Not that Aaron cared either way, but Amelia had worked her ass off to lose her baby weight and get back into dancing shape.

“Thanks, Aar.”

She twirled, which caused the high slit in the dress to part slightly.

“I really love the neckline and the slit. The slit is hot.”

Amelia laughed, and a little voice giggled with her. She hurried toward Aaron, who was bouncing a little boy on his knee.

“And what do you think, buddy?”

Their son, Jack Aaron, stared at her with Aaron’s bright blue eyes. So far, it seemed that their baby had, in fact, inherited Aaron’s beautiful icy gaze. But she was clearly there too in the shape of his nose.

Jack just made unintelligible noise and reached for her hair, which was hanging down as she crouched toward him.

“Ow.” She said as he successfully grasped a strand of her hair in his tiny fist.

Aaron extracted her hair from their son’s hand and replaced it with his pointer finger. Amelia took a step back and fussed with her now snarled hair.

“I really like it, but do you think the flower detail is really you?” Aaron asked.

“Yeah, I was wondering that too. I have another option that I’ll go try on.”

“Alright. I’m gonna go grab this one a bottle.”

It took Amelia a while to get out of the black dress and into the new red one. She loved it. It was just the right mix of sexy and timeless glamor. When she came back, Aaron was halfway through feeding Jack. When he looked up at the sound of her arrival, his jaw dropped.

“You have to wear this one.”

“Yeah?” She said shyly.

“Yes. You look just like Satine from the movie. It’s perfect.”

“Well, how appropriate that my date will be Christian the Composer then.”

Aaron laughed.

“You sure you’re ready for the choreography again?” He asked.

“Sonya promised that she was going to take it easy on me.”

Aaron looked at her like she had three heads.

“And you believe her??”

Amelia sighed heavily, knowing he was right to be incredulous.

“Yeah, I know. I’m an idiot.”

* * *

Amelia finished uncorking the fresh bottle of wine and began to fill the five wine glasses as the other Lady M’s chatted animatedly on their living room furniture.

“Alright! I’m out of here. Enjoy your evening, everyone!”

Aaron was pulling on his coat as he stood behind Amelia, who was sitting on the couch, to say goodbye. The others said goodbye, and Aaron directed his attention to his wife.

“And you.” He said, his voice jokingly serious.

She tilted her head back to look at him, resting it against the back of the couch. He kissed her deeply, even though she was effectively upside down. When they broke apart, he finished his thought.

“Just keep the dirty details to yourself, please.”

He pecked her forehead, and he walked toward their front door.

“No promises!” She yelled.

The others laughed as the front door closed and then locked shut behind him.

“Good. Now that he’s gone, cheers.” Amelia said.

They all clinked their glasses together, and Amelia took a solid sip.

“Thanks for hosting Amelia,” Jeigh said.

“Of course! Happy to do it.”

Amelia was thankful that the conversation flowed smoothly. They were all still getting to know one another, and Amelia was still a little worried that they were intimidated by her.

She was down one glass of wine when she finally gathered enough courage to broach the topic.

“Alright, out with it.”

The other four stared at her in confusion. She took a sip of her wine.

“I’m sure you all have questions, and I don’t want there to be this ‘oh she’s established. She has a Tony, and she’s married to the lead’ wall between us. We’re all in this together, so consider me an open book. Ask away.”

The other four looked at each other and then back to Amelia. Then finally, the questions started to pour out.

“What was it like to win a Tony?”

“What was it like being in such a big production for your first show?”

“Does fame ever scare you?”

“How’d you and Aaron meet?”

Amelia laughed.

“All right, all right. One at a time.”

And after that, the barriers broke down. Amelia could just feel their chemistry strengthening with every passing moment.

“How did Aaron handle it?” Holly asked.

“Handle what?” Amelia asked, confused for a moment.

“Your early success. I mean, you were only 25 when you won for Anything Goes.”

Amelia shuffled at that question, but she knew they deserved honesty.

“Really well at first. He’s incredibly supportive, which is a godsend in this industry, but he’s had his moments, and after a certain point, it bothered him. Not because he was mad at me specifically, but by that point, he had been in two nominated productions and had never won.”

She took a large gulp of wine. She had buried their near-break up into the recesses of her brain years ago, and so it was weird to think about that excruciating period of their relationship.

“We got into this massive fight about a month and a half after I won, and we nearly broke up over it.”

“Really?” Jacqueline asked, surprised.

“This industry isn’t easy. People get jealous. It happens.”

“That doesn’t really sound like Aaron.”

“That’s why it really freaked me out. I was ready to dump his ass even though I was convinced at that point that he was the one.”

“How’d you stay together then?”

“Communication, therapy, and an intense physical attraction.” She said honestly.

There was a murmur of understanding before Amelia noticed a gleam in Robyn’s eye.

“What, Robyn?”

“You brought it up, so I’m asking. Favorite body part?”

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me your husbands.”

Robyn held out her glass as she laughed. Amelia laughed too and tapped her drink as they cheers’ed.

“Arms. 100 percent Aaron’s arms.”

“Abs,” Robyn said.

She hummed in appreciation. There were very few things more attractive than a six-pack. Amelia was feeling a bit buzzed; otherwise, her next thought probably would have stayed in her head.

“Plus, when those arms are holding me down. Whoo boy.”

They tittered at her words.

“How’s the sex?” Holly asked.

Amelia was buzzed, but she wasn’t that intoxicated. And she knew, even though he had been joking, for the most part, Aaron would be annoyed if she divulged too much. At least this early on anyway.

“It’s amazing. Always has been, actually, which is a little surprising seeing as we’ve been together since our early-ish 20s.”

Thankfully, the subject changed after her answer, so she didn’t have to divulge much more. An hour or so later, Aaron returned home.

“Hello?” Aaron said.

“In here!” Amelia yelled back.

Holly, Jacqueline, Robyn, and Jeigh were putting on their coats as they readied to leave. Aaron walked into the living room, and at first, none of them noticed him.

“Heading out?” He asked.

The five of them turned at the sound of his voice, and they all, including Amelia, stared. His arms were shining with sweat as he had just come back from the gym. He was wearing a cut-up old college shirt, which left his arms, sides and the tips of his shoulders exposed.

Robyn cleared her throat noticeably.

“Uh yeah, we were. Thanks for letting us steal your living room.”

“No problem. I’m looking forward to working with you all myself.”

“Have a good night, Aaron. Thanks again, Ames.”

Amelia herself had barely taken her eyes off Aaron’s glistening biceps.

“Uh, of course. Hopefully, we can do it again soon.”

Not long after that, the couple was alone again as the door locked automatically behind the others. Amelia rubbed her legs together in discomfort as she turned to put the wine glasses in the dishwasher.

“Hey, babe?”

“Yeah?”

“Uh, why were they all staring at me?”

She reluctantly closed the washer and turned to face him.

“I may have mentioned that your arms are my favorite body part.”

He chuckled at her.

“That’s it?”

“Well, if you haven’t noticed, you’re kinda glistening right now.”

He cornered her against the counter.

“Am I?”

Oh, that bastard. He knew what he was doing.

“Yeah. I er also might have mentioned that I really like it when you hold me down.”

“Ames.”

“And I might have mentioned that our sex is amazing. I’m sorry. Please forgive me.” She said, rushing through the last of her statement.

She made a point to look at him with big innocent eyes in an attempt to appease him. He was grinning devilishly as he caged her in with said gleaming arms.

“For the record, I never talk about our sex life.”

“Oh, sure.” She said, scoffing.

“Are you calling me a liar?” He asked.

“Yes. And if you’re telling the truth, then I’m calling you a prude.”

Oh, she was totally teasing him if the look on her face was any indication. Two could play at that game.

“I think you and I both know that I’m no prude, baby girl.”

His dark gaze made her swallow hard. Then before she knew it, she was being shoved toward the wall of their kitchen. She tried to keep up with his brusque kiss as he pinned her wrists above her head with one hand and yanked her sweatpants down with the other.

* * *

Amelia tapped her manicured nails against her phone, anxiously. She tried not to be annoyed, but her one pet peeve was when people were late. It made her worry that something was wrong.

“Ms. Hillux?”

“Yes?”

“Hi. My apologies for being late. Mr. Tveit sent me. You can follow me.”

Amelia followed the PA as they weaved through the set. The location was incredibly impressive. They really were right on the ocean.

“They’re shooting right now, but once they’re done, I can take you on set.”

“Ok. Could I watch?”

“I don’t see why not.”

They meandered closer to the film crew, and Amelia could just spot Aaron through the crowd. She loved watching him act. He was just so damn good at it.

“Cut! Great job today, everyone. Well done.”

“Go ahead.” The PA said.

Amelia left and walked right onto the set.

“Woah. Who’s the bombshell?” Manny Montana asked.

Serinda hit him in the back of the head.

“That’s Aaron’s fiancée, you idiot.”

At the mention of his fiancée, Aaron’s head whipped around. His eyes lit up, and he broke out into a wide grin, his dimples popping. She gave a small wave back and walked toward him. She was trying not to embarrass herself in front of his castmates or the crew behind her. But if she was being honest, she wanted nothing more than to launch herself into his arms and kiss him until she couldn’t breathe anymore.

“Hi.” She said softly when she reached him.

“Hi.” He said back.

They just stared at each other for a moment, the tension palpable.

“Dude! Kiss her already!” Brandon said.

Amelia was going to say something, but Aaron heeded his castmate’s words and kissed her. She couldn’t stop herself from wrapping her arms around his neck as he placed an appropriate albeit heated kiss to her lips.

They broke apart as Amelia’s feet dropped back down to the floor. She buried her face into his shirt as she hugged him.

“I missed you.” She said, her voice muffled by the fabric of his shirt.

Aaron placed a kiss on her hair.

“I missed you too.”

Amelia reluctantly extricated herself from his arms and turned to his castmates.

“Guys, this is my fiancée Amelia Hillux.”

“Hi! It’s so nice to finally meet you all. It’s been a long time coming.”

Vanessa was the first to reach her and extended her hand.

“It’s nice to meet you too! We’ve heard so much about you.”

“You too, Vanessa. I hope he hasn’t been talking all of your ears off about me.”

Serinda laughed.

“Oh, don’t worry about it. He should be talking about his fiancée all the time.”

Amelia laughed along with her.

“Speaking of being engaged, let’s see the ring!” Vanessa said excitedly.

The girls both crowded her as she held out her left hand.

“I’m still not used to this.” She said, speaking to Aaron.

A quick look of regret crossed Aaron’s face.

“Sorry I haven’t been there to run interference.”

She squeezed his hand with her right, and he smiled gratefully at her.

“Wow! This is gorgeous, Aaron.” Serinda said.

“Yeah, damn Tveit. Didn’t know you had such excellent taste in jewelry.”

“Oh, my God. Will you please tell my mother that? She’s convinced that I don’t.”

Amelia did a double-take at that.

“You’ve never told me that.”

“Yeah, she’s convinced that you sent me options, or I asked your Mom or something.”

Amelia laughed.

“You didn’t?” Vanessa asked.

“Nope. All me. Well, let me give you a quick tour Ames.”

Aaron took her hand and started to lead her away from everyone else.

“Don’t forget that we have to be at the gun range in an hour and a half,” Dan said.

“Got it,” Aaron said.

With that, Aaron led her away and toward the rest of the massive set.

“Gun range?” She asked.

“Yeah, we have to do consistent weapons training for the show.”

“Damn. I mean, I knew you learned how to shoot for this, but I didn’t realize that.”

“You can come if you want.”

She wrinkled her nose at the thought. Guns were just not her thing. Even when she had guest-starred on the Law and Order shows, she had always managed to avoid it.

“I figured that would be your reaction.”

“I’d come if I could just watch you. I’m sure you look really hot.”

He rolled his eyes at her flirting and led her through the Graceland house set.

“Jeez, this set is massive!”

“Yeah, it’s awesome, right?”

“Amazing! And you guys really are right on the ocean.”

“Yeah, I love it. I would say we can go sit on the beach for a bit, but I should get the costume back to them.”

“Probably wise. Are you guys almost done with reshoots?” She asked as he led her back the way they came and past the camera crew.

“Just about. I’ll be home before you know it.”

“Good cause we gotta find a place.”

He hummed. They made their way to Aaron’s trailer, and she made herself at home.

“Have you heard back from the label about your album?” He asked.

He wandered back toward the “living space” of his trailer. His t-shirt was thrown over his shoulder as he buttoned his jeans.

“Yeah, I did. They’re on board! They called me while I was waiting for the plane this morning.”

“Babe! That’s great!” He said, his eyes bright.

“Thanks!”

Aaron yanked his shirt over his head and joined her on the couch. He pulled her by her ankles so that her bottom was now firmly in his lap.

“You should have led with that.”

She shrugged.

“I’m here to see you.”

“Well, either way, congratulations, baby. I’m so happy for you.”

He cupped her cheek as he pressed a firm kiss to her lips. They broke apart, and she bit her lip. Aaron snickered darkly at her reaction. She breathed heavily through her nose as she tried to control herself.

When she opened her eyes, his gaze had softened. She pushed a hand through his hair lovingly.

“I’m glad they didn’t make you grow your hair back out or the beard. I hated that thing.”

“It was a shitty beard on purpose. My character was high on oxy.”

“Well, I still didn’t like it.”

He pecked her lips just to get her to stop complaining.

“Wanna show me some apartment options before I need to head out?”

“Yeah, probably a good idea. I’m realizing now that between wedding planning, recording the album, and apartment hunting, I might lose my sanity.”

“Well, we don’t want that to happen, so at the very least, I can help with two of the three.”

Amelia was cuddling into Aaron’s side by the evening with his arm draped across her shoulder in the loud bar. Her left hand was resting softly on his thigh, and Aaron’s eye kept dropping to the new ring on her finger as it caught the light.

Amelia was taking a sip of her beer when Dan spoke.

“I just gotta say, man. Amelia is totally out of your league.”

Their assembled group laughed even though Aaron and Amelia both flushed in embarrassment.

“Yeah, I know,” Aaron said.

“So you guys met at the Tony’s, right?”

Aaron traced patterns on her exposed shoulder; she was wearing a red sundress, as Amelia answered Vanessa’s question.

“Yeah, in 2009. And I’m stating for the record that even though there is a karaoke machine in this bar, I will not be singing tonight.”

Vanessa laughed.

“Wow, you guys have been together for a long time then,” Serinda said.

“How long have you been planning this, Aaron?” Vanessa asked.

“Yeah, and how’d you do it? Was it a surprise?”

Aaron took a large drink from his own beer. He had never told Amelia a lot of this.

“I can answer how he did it. I had no clue it was coming. I mean, obviously, we had talked about marriage, but that was it. But, he just called me one day and said he had taken off work with you all and was coming home. Next thing I know, I’m being dragged through the streets of New York to Radio City Music Hall, and Aaron’s down on one knee.”

The girls cooed at Aaron’s romantic proposal, making him blush.

“Nicely done, man,” Manny said, nodding in approval.

Amelia squeezed his thigh with her left hand, and he looked at her.

“It was very romantic. He did a good job.” She said, smiling up at him.

“So, how long were you planning this, Aar?” Vanessa asked.

Aaron turned away from Amelia and took another drink from his pint.

“Well, if I’m being honest, 2011.”

Amelia choked on her beer and immediately started coughing.

“What?!” She exclaimed.

His castmates started laughing at her outburst.

“Yeah. I may or may not have floated the idea to your Dad at the Tony’s after-party.”

“You’re joking. That was the first night you met him.”

Aaron just shrugged and trudged on with Vanessa’s question.

“But in terms of serious planning, I bought the ring in 2013.”

Amelia’s jaw dropped.

“I take it you knew none of this, Amelia?”

“No clue.”

She was staring at Aaron in awe. He just chuckled at her shocked expression and kissed her forehead.

Several beers later and Amelia was trying to balance on the curb of the sidewalk as they walked back to Aaron’s Florida rental apartment. Aaron’s arm was outstretched as she held out their tangled hands in her attempt to balance.

“You’re gonna hurt yourself,” Aaron said.

“Hey! I may be buzzed, but my gracefulness never fails me, Tveit.”

She hopped down from the curb as they jaywalked across the street to his building. He unlocked the door, and they entered his sparsely decorated apartment. She followed him to the kitchen and boosted herself up onto the counter. Aaron’s jacket swallowed her small frame as she kicked her ankle against the cabinet.

“I can’t believe you bought this ring in 2013. I can’t believe you knew you wanted to marry me in 2011.”

Aaron closed the fridge door and handed her a bottle of water. He leaned against the opposite wall and stared at her.

“I mean, that was part of the reason why I was so upset when we nearly broke up after that fight over your Tony.”

She hummed thoughtfully at his words as she watched him drink his own water.

“I should have proposed to you a long time ago.” He said with honesty.

He took another swig of water before putting the bottle down and crossing the room, so he stood in front of her.

“If our schedules had been better, I would have.”

He slid his hands up her bare legs as she looked down at him. He pulled her closer to him by her knees, and she locked her ankles against his back.

“You would be Mrs. Amelia Tveit by now.” He said, continuing to run his hands up and down her thighs, which made her shiver.

“Who says I’m going to take your name?”

A look of fear crossed Aaron’s face, afraid that he misspoke.

“Hey!” She said.

She ran a hand through his shorn hair.

“I’m joking. Of course, I’m taking your name.”

He tapped his fingers against her thighs, nervously.

“Oh, ok, cool.”

She laughed at him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“It’s you and me for the rest of our lives, and I want everyone to know that. Plus, I don’t like the idea of having a different last name from my kids.”

“Kids?”

“Yes, kids. As in child but plural.”

He laughed at her phrasing.

“God. I can’t wait to marry you.”

She tugged so now their lips were inches apart and tightened her ankles against his back.

“Ditto, Mr. Tveit.”

And he wasted no time in kissing her.

* * *

Aaron gripped Amelia’s hand as she squeezed it hard.

“Breathe Ames. C’mon.”

She sucked in a breath through her teeth.

“And out. Like singing exercises.”

She huffed out a laugh.

“I think giving birth to your baby is a bit more complicated than singing exercises.”

Aaron chuckled and kissed the top of her very sweaty head. How she was able to string together a coherent sentence at this point was beyond him.

“Alright, Amelia. We can see the head now. Big push.”

She gripped Aaron’s hand hard again as she pushed with everything she had. Even with the epidural, she could feel the burning sensation.

“Oh, holy fuck.” She cursed.

She stopped pushing when her doctor told her to. She thumped her head against Aaron’s chest, exhausted. She was thankful that he had changed out of his costume. She would have felt guilty for getting sweat and a bit of blood all over Catherine’s masterpiece.

“Almost there, Amelia. Couple more.” Their doctor said.

Aaron pushed her sweaty bangs out of her eyes.

“Alright, let’s do this again, Amelia.”

She lifted her head from Aaron’s chest, and he shifted a bit to support her from behind.

“And one big push.”

She rolled her head down to face her abdominals and pushed.

“There’s the head!”

She was so tired she was barely aware of the medical staff buzzing behind the doctor.

“Little push Amelia.”

“Almost there, Love,” Aaron said.

She took a deep breath and gave one final little push. Even though it was mostly numb down there, she could feel the baby leave.

“There we go! It’s a boy.”

Amelia let out a choked cry, a mixture of joy and exhaustion, as she turned to Aaron. Aaron was crying.

“A boy.” He said, clearly in disbelief.

He kissed the crown of her head.

“Want to cut the cord still, Dad?”

“I-yeah.”

As Aaron cut the cord, Amelia readjusted her medical gown so that the skin of her chest was exposed. The doctor handed their son to Amelia, placing him firmly against her bare skin. The baby was fussing slightly until Amelia secured her arms around him.

Aaron was back at her head, partially sitting onto the bed now as he looked down at their son.

“He’s so beautiful.” Aaron choked out.

Amelia couldn’t bear to turn her head away from the tiny face to look at her husband. Aaron’s arm slid against her as he reached out to run his pointer finger across the soft cheek of their baby. That was when his eyes opened.

“He has your eyes,” Amelia said, crying too.

Aaron’s hand left their son and cupped Amelia’s cheek instead.

“I love you.”

“I love you.” She said back.

Aaron kissed her softly. Much to Amelia’s chagrin, the doctors had to take their nugget away to clean him and do whatever it was doctors and nurses did with a newborn.

It was only after Amelia delivered the placenta that she felt like she could breathe entirely again. It was over. Finally.

“Do you have a name?” A nurse asked.

Aaron looked at Amelia.

“Uh, Jack?” He asked nervously.

She nodded.

“Jack.” He said with more confidence than before.

“Jack Aaron.” She said, piping up.

“Babe.”

She turned to face him and grabbed his hand, squeezing hard.

“Jack Aaron Tveit.” She said.

Aaron started crying again, and she squeezed his hand once more.

“Jack Aaron Tveit.” He echoed.

“Wonderful.” The nurse said.

The rest of the day was a bit of a blur. It had taken Amelia a few tries to get the hang of breastfeeding. And once she managed to feed him, both Amelia and their son had passed out with exhaustion.

That gave Aaron time to talk to both of their parents and, much to his surprise Karen, Hank, Ricky, and a few others from Moulin Rouge who had arrived to hear the good news.

Amelia woke up suddenly, gasping loudly. Aaron, who awoke at the unexpected noise, jerked in the chair positioned in the corner of the room between the bed and the bassinet. Amelia rubbed her eyes tiredly.

“What time is it?”

Aaron checked his watch.

“11:30.”

She pushed herself up so that she was upright.

“I gotta feed him again.”

She went to get out of bed, but Aaron stopped her.

“I got him.”

Aaron picked Jack up, who fussed at the movement.

“You’re good. Daddy’s got you.”

Aaron handed him to Amelia, and she shifted so she could feed him. Thankfully it didn’t take long. She didn’t know if she had the mental capacity to deal with any struggles at the moment. Before she knew it, their baby had fallen back asleep. Aaron picked him up and put him back in the bassinet.

She sighed heavily as she covered herself back up, and Aaron sat back down in the chair.

“You can come up here.” She said quietly.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I miss you.”

Aaron kicked off his sneakers and slid in behind her so that they were both facing the bassinet. He gingerly wrapped an arm around her body. He didn’t miss it when she snuggled her backside into him.

“I can’t believe he has your eyes. I’m excited.” She said.

“Yeah, but he’s got your cute nose.”

“True.” She said quietly.

Aaron kissed the closest spot he could reach.

“We did good, Babe. He’s gorgeous.”

She turned her head a bit to look at him. She craned her hand back to caress his cheek.

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Mrs. Tveit.”

* * *

“So, are you going to sleep with him tonight?”

Amelia tried not to play with her hair as the Uber drove her to the afterparty.

“What kind of question is that? And even than Mary, why the hell is it any of your business?”

Mary laughed at the other end of the line.

“Just humor me. I’m living vicariously through you.”

“Oh, my God. You need a man.”

Mary completely ignored her comment.

“Also, that dress is hot, Ames. I could tell even through the picture.”

“Thanks. Glad to have management’s seal of approval.”

Mary scoffed.

“You don’t need it. But just answer the damn question.”

Amelia rolled her eyes at her persistent long-time manager and friend.

“He’s my husband Mar, and we’re going on our honeymoon tomorrow. Of course, we’re going to sleep together.”

Mary snickered.

“I can’t believe you just made me say it out loud.”

“You say that as though he’s not going to want to rip that dress off you the second he sees you.”

Amelia was pulling up to the venue now and knew she would have to hang up.

“Goodbye, Mary.” She said with faux irritation.

“Love you. Tell Aaron I said he was great tonight.”

“Will do. I’ll text you when we’re getting on the plane tomorrow.”

“Alright. Bye.”

Amelia hung up, thanked the uber driver, and entered the massive club. It was clear that the mood shifted from run of the mill afterparty to a more intense environment.

“Amelia!”

Aaron’s parents were gathering the coats at the front as Amelia entered.

“Hey, you guys!”

She kissed both of them in greeting quickly.

“You look beautiful, Amelia darling.” His mother said.

“Thanks! Have you enjoyed tonight?”

“We did. But it’s definitely time for us to go.”

Amelia laughed.

“Well, enjoy the evening, sweetheart. Remind my son to send us photos from the honeymoon.” Aaron’s Dad said.

“I will. Goodnight.”

She kissed them goodbye and went off to find her husband. It wasn’t hard. He, understandably, was the center of attention. But she couldn’t help but smile to herself as the crowd around him shifted their attention from him to her.

She never tried to command the room’s attention. It was just her natural outgoing demeanor and confidence after years of performing that made it easy. Although at this moment, it didn’t hurt that she was dressed to the nines in a red lace bodycon dress, with nude heels and a nude lip.

It was a bit dramatic, but the crowd parted like the red sea. At the commotion, Aaron looked up, and their eyes connected. She grinned widely, as did he in response. It appeared that he was excusing himself politely because seconds later, he was moving swiftly through the crowd to stand in front of her.

“Holy shit. Look at you.”

She gave a demure little curtsey as she looked up at him through her lashes. He swallowed hard.

“You don’t look too bad yourself, Stud.” She said, clearly teasing.

And it was true, he looked great. His hair was still gelled 50s style. But his outfit was quite modern with black pants and a white button-down.

Aaron stepped up to her and left little space between them. He slowly slid a hand over her hip, reveling in the feeling of the red lace under his fingertips.

“I can’t believe I’m married to you.” He said quietly.

His gaze was burning as she looked up into his blue eyes.

“The feeling’s mutual handsome.”

Amelia didn’t realize how shallow her breaths were until Aaron leaned in close enough for her to be self-conscious. Mercifully, he finally stopped teasing and kissed her. She stretched up onto her toes and felt her dress ride up.

“Mmm.” She squeaked.

She dropped back to the ground, causing their lips to detach, and pulled her dress back down.

“Sorry, but I’m not trying to flash everybody.”

Aaron laughed.

“Just as well. Let’s get you a drink.”

Aaron tangled their hands together and led her through the crowd of Grease live cast members and family. He stopped when they reached the VIP booth. He grabbed an empty glass from the table and a bottle of tequila from the ice bucket. She laughed when she realized he was making her drink of choice without her even asking.

Aaron handed her the glass and grabbed his own beer. She followed him to the booth and slid after him to the corner of the bench. She took a sip of her drink as he pulled her into his side, his arm slung around her shoulders.

“Aren’t we being a bit anti-social?” She asked, looking up at him.

Aaron shrugged as he pushed a piece of her hair back into place.

“I just spent the entire first month of my marriage with these people. So at this point, I would much rather hang out with my wife instead. I don’t care if it’s rude.”

Amelia snorted into her drink.

“Tell me how you really feel, Aar.”

Aaron scooted closer to her, so there was no space between them. He slid his hand along her exposed thigh and played with the fringe hem of her lace dress.

“I’m aware that was sarcasm, but I just really missed you.”

“I’ve been here for a week.”

He shook his head and cupped her cheek.

“Yeah, but I couldn’t really pay attention to you. I’m sick of having to share you with my schedule, your schedule. I’m excited for it to be just you and me off the grid for two weeks.”

Amelia pecked his lips, which caused his hand to slid toward the back of her head.

“By the way, your Dad reminded me to tell you that he expects photos from the trip.”

“Oh, you saw them?”

And so the conversation shifted topics. They caught up on everything that had happened since their wedding at the beginning of December. He was right. Even though she had been in Los Angeles for a week before the Grease performance, she realized they hadn’t had time to catch up.

But now, three drinks in, things were becoming increasingly tense between them. They were no longer alone as Julianne, and her fiancée sat to chat with them. However, that didn’t stop Aaron from tracing patterns on the inside of her thigh. She couldn’t take the teasing anymore, and she had gotten to the point with her drinking, where she had happy feet. She just needed to move.

She finished her fourth drink and put the empty glass down. She turned her head to face him and put her lips to his ear.

“Wanna go dance?” She asked.

“In the mood Babe?”

She curled her hand in his shirt and pulled him even closer, so only he could hear her.

“In more ways than one.”

His eyes flashed as she smiled innocently at him. He squeezed her leg as he spoke.

“We’re gonna go dance, guys. We’ll see you later.”

He stood up and offered his hand to her. She took it, and he led her to the crowded dance floor. The earlier song ended, and it switched to an R&B number. It was perfect for Amelia’s current mood. She positioned herself so that they were back to front.

“I love this song.” She said, thumping her head back against his chest to look at him.

He looked down at her with his normal blue eyes, a much darker color. She started to move her hips to the beat as he matched her. One of his hands rested across her hips, holding her ass against him. But the other was sitting dangerously on the hem of her dress and was quite close to the apex of her thighs.

_Aye. I’m back, and I’m better. I want you bad as ever._

Although grinding wasn’t complicated dancing by any means, Aaron was always impressed by the control Amelia had over her own body. It was intoxicating and oh so sexy.

_Girl, I’m that somebody, so I’m next up. Be damned if I let him catch up._

Aaron latched his lips to her neck, and that was the first time he noticed her falter in her dancing. They kept moving for a few more lines as Aaron continue to press open-mouthed kisses up and down her throat.

_Girl, that man didn’t show any effort. Do all I can just to show you you’re special._

She swallowed back a groan. She didn’t want him to know how quickly he had gotten to her. She spun in his hold, which forced him to remove both his lips and his hands. They were face to face now, and she wasted no time in kissing him.

_Pull up, Skurt. Get in the ride. Left hand is steering the other is gripping your thigh._

She rolled her eyes at him. He thought he was so funny when he actually gripped her thigh with his right hand. His left, meanwhile, was firmly on her ass, pushing her into him. Yet, she couldn’t stop herself from shivering as she could feel the cool metal from his wedding ring through the thin fabric of her skirt.

_Don’t. Girl, said he keeps on playing games. And his loving ain’t the same._

Amelia thought his right hand would stop sliding up her thigh and under her dress at some point. He pressed a searing kiss to her lips, which she returned enthusiastically. But then she realized his hand hadn’t stopped and instead was pushing her thong aside.

“What are you doing?” She asked, breathing hard against his lips.

“Do you want me to stop?”

Amelia huffed out a laugh of irony.

“What?” He asked.

He had pulled back slightly to get a better look at her flushed face. His hand hadn’t moved since she spoke.

“Mary asked me earlier if we were going to have sex tonight.”

Aaron snorted.

“What did you tell her?”

“That you’re my husband, and we’re going on our honeymoon tomorrow.”

The hand on her thigh twitched, causing her to hiss.

“And?”

She pushed forward so that her breath was hot on his face.

“And I told her that I thought we were going to sleep together tonight.”

Giving you the world baby when you get space. Playin’ game get me laid. Baby let’s penetrate oh baby. Don’t.

Aaron’s long finger slid into her, and she gasped loudly. He kissed her, sliding his tongue into her mouth as she panted.

“Looks like you guessed right.” He said, grinning lewdly.

His eyes scanned over her head, and it was clear nobody was paying them any mind.

“Stop being such a fucking tease.” She growled.

He curled his finger, and her tough façade broke as she whined.

“I’m the tease?! Have you see this dress?”

She grinned wide, having regained some of her composure.

“Why do you think I wore it?”

He snarled and kissed her brusquely as he quickly coaxed her to the edge. Her mind was running at a frantic pace. He shouldn’t be able to bring her this swiftly to an orgasm, but after seven years, he knew how to make her snap.

She came around his fingers, moaning loudly into his mouth.

“Wanna get the honeymoon started early?” He asked.

He slowly extracted his hand from her and readjusted her underwear.

“I thought we just did.” She said, face flushed and lips swollen.

He beamed, his dimples popping.

“Let’s get out of here.” He said.

_H-Town got me feeling so throwed. Don’t._

* * *

Aaron entered his Vancouver rental apartment, locking the door behind him as he returned from his run. He wiped the sweat from his face with the hem of his shirt as he made his way to the kitchen. While he poured a large glass of water, he heard his phone ding with three notifications in quick succession.

**AmesHillux posted to their story.**

**AmesHillux tagged you in their story.**

**LauraOsnes tagged you in their story.**

Aaron groaned. If the notifications were any indication, his wife was clearly up to no good. He clicked on the first pop up, and it brought him to her Instagram. Her profile photo was the promotional image of her as Travesty the Diamond Dog. But it was her bio that always made him smile.

**Mrs. Tveit  
Currently: Detective Anna Halperin and Travesty the Diamond Dog**

Once he managed to tear his eyes away from the first line, he clicked her story. On it was a photo of their television, the promo for his new Hallmark movie with Laura clear on the screen. Her caption made him laugh.

**ACCENT?? NOBODY TOLD ME ABOUT AN ACCENT**

He clicked through to her next post. Again she had taken a photo of the tv, but this time the movie’s title card was on the screen.

**A little warning next time maybe? @aarontveit @lauraosnes**

Laura, meanwhile, had just reposted Amelia’s first story with crying-laughing emojis as the caption. The second she had also reposted with a text caption this time.

**Busted @aarontveit**

Oh, he was going to kill Laura. She would throw him under the bus with Amelia and leave him to fend for himself.

He wasn’t sure how to respond via social media, so he settled for calling his wife instead. He sipped his water as he waited for her to pick up.

“Hello?” He asked.

He could hear jostling on the video call, but she wasn’t in the shot. But suddenly, there she was, eyeliner immaculate and with her hair tied back in a messy ponytail.

“YOU HAVE AN ACCENT?”

“Well, hello to you too, Mrs. Tveit.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about the accent?”

Aaron picked up his glass and carried her to the living room, sitting down on the couch.

“I didn’t think it mattered.”

Amelia held a hand to her heart in a dramatic fashion.

“I have a thing for accents.”

Aaron laughed at her.

“I honestly always thought I would marry a Brit.” She said, teasing him.

“Well, hate to break it to you, but you settled for a guy from upstate New York.”

Amelia laughed too.

“The sex makes up for it.” She said.

He flushed a deep red color, which made her laugh harder.

“Well, anyway, how’s Canada?”

“Canada’s good. I’m excited to start shooting the new show.”

“I can’t believe you get to work with Key from Key and Peele. Are you going to show him your Christmas outfit?”

“I kinda have to, don’t I?”

“I think he’ll find it hilarious.”

“Thanks for helping set this place up, by the way.”

She shifted on the feed and was now clearly resting against the headboard of their bed.

“Of course, Babe. Gotta channel my inner 1950s housewife every once and a while.”

Aaron shook his head at her as she giggled.

“How’s America and work?”

She scoffed.

“Well, our political system is basically on the brink of collapse, and everyone is talking about the 25th amendment.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah, but I’d rather not talk about that shit show, so work is good.”

Amelia had been filming for Law and Order: SVU on and off for the past few weeks.

“Have they given you weapons training yet?”

“They have.” She said, rolling her eyes at him.

He grinned widely, remembering her disdain from when he was on Graceland.

“Welcome to the club, Babe.”

She held up her middle finger to the screen.

“How did it feel?”

“Definitely weird. A tiny bit sexy, though.”

He rolled his eyes at her.

“I miss you.” He said sincerely.

She smiled softly at him.

“Me and Miles will be there before you know it.”

He pouted petulantly.

“Yeah, in a week. And then they’re gonna stick you in quarantine.”

She groaned. The idea of isolating for at least 10 days, no matter how well-intentioned, was not something Amelia was looking forward to.

“You’ll have Miles, though.”

“Yeah, but I can’t kiss Miles.”

“If he could talk, he would beg to differ.”

He glared at her. She sighed. She missed him too.

“I miss you and your kisses too, Tveit.” She said.

His face softened at her words.

“Always glad to hear that.”

She smiled back at him.

“Now. Can you please do the accent for me?”

“Oh, my God.”

* * *

Amelia was seeing red.

“Excuse me?!” She said, her voice dangerously low in anger.

“It’s not my call Babe.”

She was ready to throw her phone across the room.

“I’m in a fucking nominated production, Aaron.”

“I know Ames. But there’s nothing I can do. Mary Elizabeth and I are presenting. The network said we have to go together to promote the show.”

“Tell them, no! You’re married, for Pete’s sake. They can’t expect you to take another woman as your date to the fucking Tony’s when your own wife is nominated.”

“It doesn’t work that way, Amelia. You know that I can’t just tell them no.”

“I’ve seen you once in three months, Aaron! Once!”

Aaron could feel his temper start to flare as he stared at her angry facial expression on the screen of his phone.

“Yeah, and who’s fault is that?”

“Don’t you turn this around on me! I’m not the one taking that…that-homewrecker to the Tony’s as their date.”

“Amelia!”

Oh, he was angry now.

“I mean, she’s already done it once. Who’s to say she won’t do it again.”

“Amelia. That’s out of line.”

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.

“Maybe that’s why you haven’t been home since you left in March.”

The silence was absolutely deafening. All that was left was the occasional honk of a horn and Miles’ soft pants from his dog bed on the floor.

“I would never, ever cheat on you, Amelia Jane Tveit.”

“Yeah, well, make sure the homewrecker knows that before you take her as your plus one for the world to see.”

And with that, she hung up, throwing her phone across the room. Miles jumped up at the sudden noise as it hit the wall. She very likely broke it, but she was so furious, it just didn’t matter.

This was not how she pictured the first seven months of her marriage. Since they married in December, the longest stretch they had been together was their honeymoon in February. They had enjoyed a two-week-long trip and then another two weeks when they returned to New York before Aaron left to film.

Etta James started to blast from her phone as it vibrated against the hardwood floor. He was clearly trying to call her back. But she ignored it, getting up to find the bottle of Roca Patrón Añejo that she kept for emergencies.

When she returned to their bedroom, she was slugging straight from the bottle. Miles was whimpering as the phone continued to ring. She made the mistake of looking at the glass container in her hand. It had been a wedding gift from Aaron, given her love for tequila.

Just that thought alone made her burst into tears. She clambered back onto the bed, resting her back against the headboard as Miles jumped up to join her. She tangled a hand in his fur.

“I miss him too, bubby.”

Miles just looked up at her with those eyes of his and tried to lick the tears off her face. 10 minutes later, she had undoubtedly drunk enough tequila to be drunk. This was strong stuff, and she was on a mostly empty stomach.

She belched and put the bottle on the nightstand.

“Oh, shut up.” She groaned as her phone rang for what felt like the hundredth time.

She managed to drag herself off the bed and swipe the phone from the floor. It had shattered quite badly, but she could still read the notifications on the screen.

**15 Missed Calls from The Husband ❤️**

**From The Husband ❤️: Pick up the fucking phone**

**From The Husband ❤️: Amelia Jane Tveit**

**From The Husband ❤️: I haven’t nor have I ever considered cheating on you**

**From The Husband ❤️: The fact that I even need to say that is fucking ridiculous**

**From The Husband ❤️: Answer the phone.**

**From The Husband ❤️: Amelia c’mon**

**From The Husband ❤️: Ames**

**From The Husband ❤️: Baby. Please.**

**From The Husband ❤️: I miss you too. So much**

**From The Husband ❤️: This wasn’t how I wanted to spend the first seven months of our marriage either**

She ignored the deluge of messages in favor of the bottle of tequila again. She took one final swig and managed to stand up. She stumbled back toward their bar and had the wherewithal to at least cap the bottle.

By the time she returned, her phone was ringing once again. She ignored it and stumbled to the bathroom as she got ready for bed. She wiped her makeup from her face, brushed her teeth, and stripped. She dragged Aaron’s old Next to Normal t-shirt over her head and clumsily fell into bed.

Her phone finally stopped ringing. But his last two messages caught her eye.

**From The Husband ❤️: I love you Amelia**

**From The Husband ❤️: Let’s not go to bed angry**

But still, she ignored him and just shut her phone off.

The next morning she was rudely awakened by the slamming of her front door. Miles’ head sprung up as Amelia groaned loudly. Her head was splitting open, and her mouth felt like it was full of cotton.

The door to their bedroom opened abruptly and slammed against the wall.

“Well, don’t you look bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” Mary said.

Amelia just moaned and buried her head back under the covers.

“Care to explain why your husband has called me at least 30 times in the last 12 hours? Or why he texted this morning to remind me that you have a contractual obligation to show up at Irving Plaza tonight?”

“Not particularly. No.” She said, voice hoarse.

The bed bent as Mary sat down on it and threw back her covers. Amelia grappled for them, now freezing as she was only wearing Aaron’s shirt. When Mary prevented her from reaching them, Amelia reluctantly sat up and buried her head between her knees in an attempt to stop the nausea.

“You’re hungover,” Mary said, the disdain clear in her voice.

“No, I’m not.”

Mary was glaring at her as Amelia peeked out from under her legs.

“Roca Patrón Añejo? Really?”

“It was a bad night.”

Amelia’s phone was in Mary’s hand. She had clearly turned it on because the notifications came flooding in.

“Clearly. Well, you need to get up. We have to get you to your dress fitting, press, and then you, as your husband so kindly reminded us both, have to be at Irving Plaza tonight.”

Amelia emerged from her knees and rubbed her face. She held out her hand, asking for her phone. She had several additional missed calls. Mostly from Aaron but a few from Mary. But it was the text messages again that drew her eye.

**From The Husband ❤️: Amelia**

**From The Husband ❤️: If you’re not going to respond, let me remind you that you already agreed to come to the Irving show tonight.**

**From The Husband ❤️: I don’t care if you’re mad at me. You don’t have a choice**

**From The Husband ❤️: Honestly Babe. What the hell is going on??**

Amelia felt the tears prick at the corner of her eyes. She didn’t know how to explain what was going on. She may have overreacted a bit last night, but she was jealous. She was jealous and angry that she had to share Aaron with not only someone else but, frankly, the world. Maybe it was hypocritical of her as she was reasonably busy herself, but she had always been less transient than him. She just wanted to see him for more than two weeks at a time.

“What happened, Ames?”

“We got into a fight.” She said, shrugging.

Amelia slid past Mary, plugged her phone in, and stretched as she still tried not to vomit.

“About what?”

“He’s taking his costar as his date to the Tony’s.”

Mary’s eyes widened.

“Mary Elizabeth Winstead?”

Amelia nodded.

“I’m sure the network demanded it. They are presenting.”

Amelia just glared at her.

“Right. Keeping my thoughts to myself.”

Amelia just turned around, pulled the t-shirt off, and went to shower.

It was a long and exhausting day. Her hangover wore off around midday, but before that, she had to subject herself to a dress fitting for the Tony’s the next evening. Then she had to endure grueling press for the rest of the day.

She and Aaron had had minimal contact. Her first, and thus far only, message had been to confirm that she was coming to the show as required. She really was not in the mood to perform whatsoever. But she would just have to deal with it.

She arrived late to his set, which was fine by her. She had decided to wear a leather mini skirt, a tight white top, and black leather heeled ankle boots.

“Are you sure you can do this?” Mary asked.

Mary, Amelia, and Amelia’s publicist were waiting for the security team to take them backstage so Amelia could get her makeup readjusted and drop off her belongings.

“If you’re asking if I’m still hungover, I’m fine now. If you mean emotionally, I don’t really know, to be honest.”

“I can try and get you out of this. I still don’t really understand what happened but say the word, and I can.”

“I’m a big girl Mar. I can handle it. Plus, I may be mad at him, but I’m not going to do that to Aaron.”

Mary smiled slightly at that.

“Glad to see your pettiness has lessened at least somewhat.”

Amelia didn’t respond as security led them to the back. The small makeup team in the back brought her to Aaron’s dressing room. The sight of his suitcase, he had returned to the city just hours before, and his belongings made her heart clench. At least they were in the same city for the first time in months.

She placed her large purse and jacket in the corner of the room before letting the team have at her. Thankfully, it didn’t take long, and she was back in the venue, tucked at a VIP booth in the back.

As she took a long sip of tequila, she was thankful in that moment for her high alcohol tolerance. She surveyed her husband on stage. He looked amazing with his short hair grown out just long enough to cover his forehead. Even the ridiculous Hawaiian shirt he was wearing was insanely sexy.

“I never seen, girl, you know what I mean.”

Aaron scanned the crowd as one does during a performance. Then he hit a pair of eyes that he would recognize anywhere. God, she was beautiful.

“Let me take you to a place nice and quiet. There ain’t no one there to interrupt. Ain’t gotta rush.”

He stared right at her as he sang the next few lines.

“I just wanna take it nice and slow.”

Amelia looked down at her glass, embarrassed but also highly conflicted in her emotions. She loved him deeply, and she was incredibly attracted to him if the current clenching of her body was any indication. But she was still so mad at the moment.

“Now tell me, do you wanna get freaky?”

The power in his voice made her look up at the stage again. He was watching her, and she could just feel his intense blue stare.

“Cause I’ll freak you right, I will. I’ll freak you right, I will. I’ll freak you like no one has ever, ever made you feel.”

He broke eye contact with her about halfway through to grind against his mic stand. She couldn’t stop the laugh from escaping as the crowd roared. She shuddered to think about how they would react if they ever saw him at home.

“Ames. We should go.” Mary said her voice in her ear.

Amelia tore her eyes away from him.

“Just. Let me finish this.”

“Don’t you think you’ve had enough?”

Amelia glared at her again and immediately felt sorry for the hurt look on Mary’s face.

“I’m sorry, Mary. I shouldn’t be taking this out on you.”

“Just promise you’ll talk to him tonight. After the show, I mean.”

“I promise.”

Mary let her finish nursing her drink as Aaron cycled through the next few songs. Eventually, she made her way backstage and readied for her entrance for her duet with Aaron.

“Now, no show would be complete without a duet. And as you all know, the Tony’s are tomorrow. So I figured it would be appropriate to invite a Broadway goddess to the stage. Ladies and Gentlemen. From this year’s Tony-nominated production of The Crucible and 2011 Tony award winner for Best Actress in a Musical, my wife, Amelia Tveit.”

The crowd cheered wildly as Amelia walked out on stage. She waved to the audience. But then her gaze connected with Aaron, and Amelia could still see the pain in his eyes. She meanwhile was feeling a whole host of emotions at once.

He leaned towards her and kissed her cheek in greeting. She squeezed her eyes as the familiar shock every time he touched her coursed through her.

“I’ve been lonely. I’ve been waiting for you.”

She was going to kill him. He made the setlist, and honestly, these lyrics were hitting too close to home right now.

“I’m pretending, and that’s all I can do. The love I’m sending.”

She stepped to him and placed a hand on his chest. She could feel the tears pricking at her eyes.

“Ain’t making it through to your heart.”

Amelia tore away from him and kept a steady eye on the crowd. She was going to look at him as little as humanly possible. If she didn’t, she was going to lose it.

“What about love?” They sang together.

“Don’t you want someone to care about you?” She sang.

“What about love?”

Aaron was staring right at her, and she made the mistake of looking at him as they continued to sing.

“I only want to share it with you.”

He clearly didn’t think about the audience when he stepped to her and cupped her face with his hand. He looked at her and could just see the emotions swirling in her mind.

“You might need it someday.” She sang.

They kept singing, and Amelia had to use all of her acting skills to keep her emotions from pouring out. At the very least, singing at this moment was catharsis. She was able to lose herself in the song and forget about their fight.

Aaron stepped away from her and faced the crowd.

“Clock strikes upon the hour, and the sun begins to fade.”

Amelia watched him as he performed, and he really did look happy. He loved this song, and honestly, so did she. They had spent many a morning dancing to it in the kitchen.

“Sooner or later, the fever ends, and I wind up feeling down.”

As they began to sing side by side, Aaron switched his microphone to the other hand and slipped his hand around the waistband of her leather skirt.

“I need a man who’ll take a chance. On a love that burns hot enough to last.”

Aaron yanked against her hip, which forced her to turn and face him.

“So when the night falls, My lonely heart calls.”

“Oh, I wanna dance with somebody. I wanna feel the heat with somebody.”

They separated, and Aaron dance like a goof ball on the other side of the stage. As the number continued, she could feel her anger and frustration melt somewhat. It was hard not to be reminded that she loved him when he acted like this.

They continued to sing, but then he surprised her mid number when he turned off his mic and put it down. He was clearly still singing, but it was hard to hear him now. Amelia kept going but raised an eyebrow at him. But then he offered his hand, and she understood.

She shook her head but placed her mic down too and sang along. Aaron wrapped his arm around her waist as they danced quickly to the beat. His footwork, which had improved amazingly while on Grease, was immaculate.

“Oh, I wanna dance with somebody. I wanna feel the heat with somebody.”

Aaron pulled back slightly so that he could look at her.

“Yeah, I wanna dance with somebody. With somebody who loves me.”

He let her go, and after picking up their microphones, they finished the song.

“Ladies and Gentlemen. The amazingly talented, Mrs. Amelia Tveit.”

Amelia curtseyed given her short mini skirt.

“Thank you, everyone! I love you, New York. Enjoy the rest of the show!”

She surprised Aaron by kissing his cheek. So far all night, he had been the one to engage in any form of PDA, not her.

When she finally got off stage, Mary wasn’t far behind.

“Let’s go,” Amelia said.

“What?! You said you would talk to Aaron.”

“And I will. At home. Not here.”

So Amelia went home, changed out of her outfit and into Aaron’s t-shirt from the night before. She was glaring at her water bottle. She would much rather drink something stronger but had to squeeze into couture tomorrow. But then her angry thoughts were interrupted when her phone dinged.

**From The Husband ❤️: Where are you?**

**To The Husband ❤️: Home**

That was only the second text she had sent him in the last 24 hours.

**From The Husband ❤️: Are you still mad at me??**

**To The Husband ❤️: Oh look he can read the room**

**From The Husband ❤️: I don’t appreciate the snark. Am I even allowed to come home?**

**To The Husband ❤️: Seeing as we have a joint account and so by default you own half the place, yes, I suppose.**

**From The Husband ❤️: I’ll be there in half an hour**

So Amelia waited, sans pants, on the couch. She knew she was being harsh, but she was just so mad. She didn’t like feeling this way. The show tonight had taken the edge off to a certain degree, but it wasn’t enough.

“Hello?” Aaron’s voice echoed from their entryway.

Miles went flying out of their bedroom and toward the sound of Aaron’s voice. She could hear him talking excitedly to Miles as he tried to calm the boy down.

“Let’s go find Mommy, huh?”

She heard before she saw Miles. He scampered into the living room and joined her on the couch. Aaron, and his hot outfit, weren’t far behind. He did a bit of a double-take when he entered the room. He wasn’t entirely expecting to see her in nothing but his old t-shirt with her legs tucked beneath her.

“You were great tonight.”

Aaron gaped at her.

“You’ve barely talked to me in the last 24 hours after you accused me of cheating on you, and that’s what you have to say??”

“I didn’t-“

“Don’t you dare say you didn’t accuse me of having an affair because you did. You’ve never been a liar, Amelia.”

She glared at him, and he glared back.

“Fine. I did say it. It’s the only plausible explanation I have for barely seeing you for three months.”

“What the hell is going on? We were busy! You were working! I was working!”

“Yeah, with that homewrecker.”

“Stop calling her that!”

Amelia stood up in her anger.

“Oh, so you’re defending her now?”

“Jesus Christ, Hillux.” He said, pinching his nose.

That gave her pause. He hadn’t called her by her maiden name since they had gotten married. He opened his eyes and looked right at her, his blue eyes shimmering.

“I have never, ever cheated on you, Amelia. Why are you so angry?”

“I don’t-I’m just so irate that I have to share you.”

Aaron’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“You aren’t the jealous type Amelia.”

She snorted.

“Well, apparently, I am. I am so sick of sharing you. All I have done for the first seven months of my marriage is share you. With Grease, now Brain Dead. And during Nice and Slow. Good God. Every single woman wanted to jump your bones and me? I’m just trying to keep myself together cause I’m freaking out thinking that I’m not good enough for my new husband. That he found a new me, a better me in his costar. Or he wants someone else who isn’t in Broadway rehearsals and labs nearly every day. I have just never been so self-conscious in my life. And everyone keeps needling me for information! Where’s Aaron? How’s Aaron? Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. Are you keeping him happy, darling? I can’t fucking take it anymore!!”

She was breathing hard after her outburst. Aaron hesitated for a moment before crossing the room to stand in front of her. He took her into his arms as she let out a loud sob. He whispered words of reassurance against her hair as he smoothed it down with his hand. He pulled back so that they were eye to eye.

“Kiss me.” He said.

“What?”

“You heard me. Kiss me.”

She was baffled, but she still did as he asked and kissed him. He was clearly letting her control the kiss, and her body acted of her own accord as she deepened it. At her core, she had missed him desperately. Just one kiss after only seeing him once in three months was enough to send her into a frenzy.

Amelia pulled away when she couldn’t breathe anymore. Aaron’s hands were firmly placed on either side of her jaw, cradling it gently.

“I love you, Amelia. I don’t want anyone else.”

“I love you too. I’ve missed you.”

He nodded, his nose brushing hers softly as he did so.

“Missed you too.”

“Aaron?”

“Yeah, Babe?”

“Can you please be my date tomorrow?”

Aaron’s face dropped.

“Amelia. Please ask me for anything but that.”

“I can try and pull some strings on my end.”

“Baby. The network won’t care about the pull you have in the Broadway world.”

Her eyes darkened.

“So you’re telling me that you’ll get more press going with another presenter than you will be by going with a nominee?”

“That’s not what it’s about.”

“Then what’s it really about?”

“Amelia. I told you last night. It’s not my call.”

“Bullshit. You’re the lead. You could put pressure on them.”

“Why are you still asking about this? Why do you care?”

“Aside from the fact that I don’t trust the bitch?”

“Amelia, c’mon. That’s so beneath you. And either way, Mary’s personal life is none of our business.”

“It becomes my business when she’s my husband’s date. God, that just sounds as ridiculous as it is.”

“Why do you care so much?”

“BECAUSE I NEED YOUR SUPPORT RIGHT NOW. AND IF YOU DON’T COME WITH ME, PEOPLE ARE GOING TO TALK.”

“FOR THE LAST TIME, I’M NOT HAVING AN AFFAIR. WHY ARE YOU BEING SO COMPETITIVE AND-AND PETTY?”

“I’M NOT BEING COMPETITIVE OR PETTY.”

“YES, YOU ARE.”

“FUCK YOU, AARON.”

“I CAN’T TALK TO YOU WHEN YOU’RE LIKE THIS.”

She didn’t remember separating herself from his hold. But now, as they both glared at each other, breathing hard, he towered over her.

“Fine. You don’t have to.” She said.

She grabbed her water bottle, giving him a solid flash of her bare ass, and started to walk away. He breathed deeply through his nose before grabbing for her wrist.

“Hey. Stop. Please don’t go. I don’t want to go to bed angry two nights in a row.”

She yanked her wrist out of his hold.

“Yeah, well, tough.”

And she stalked off to their bedroom.

“Enjoy the couch, Tveit! Welcome back.” She yelled bitterly.

Aaron barely slept that night as he listened to her cry from their bed.


	2. Best of Wives and Best of Women

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aaron goes to an award show, Amelia is starstruck and the Tveits go on vacation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol too many characters to make this one big chapter so here's two!
> 
> Enjoy!

“Have you heard him sing?” Karen asked.

“No,” Stephen said honestly.

Aaron started laughing in embarrassment as Karen reacted enthusiastically to Stephen Colbert’s response.

“Look, this!” She pointed at him.

Aaron smiled bashfully and made a sheepish face at his friend. The crowd cheered and applauded loudly.

“Exactly!” Karen said, clapping as well.

There was a particularly loud whoop that could be heard over the rest of the crowd.

“Oh uh, seems like someone is very much a fan of Aaron’s singing.”

Karen and Aaron laughed.

“Yeah, that would be my wife,” Aaron said, grinning.

“Oh, is she in the audience?” Stephen asked.

“No, she’s backstage,” Aaron said.

“She’s in the show too, you know?” Karen said.

She knew Aaron and Amelia would never brag, so she was going to do it for them.

“Really? What a talented couple!” Stephen remarked.

“They’re one of Broadway’s power couples even if they’re too modest to admit it,” Karen said.

Aaron blushed and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Who does she play?” Stephen asked Aaron.

“Uh, well, she plays Travesty the Diamond Dog.”

Stephen did a bit of a double-take.

“So let me get this straight. Your wife plays well,…a prostitute?”

Aaron and Karen cracked up. Even Amelia could be heard laughing from backstage.

“Yeah, it took us both a minute to get used to that.”

Stephen tried to stay composed but couldn’t stop the laughter from escaping.

“I can imagine. Now tell me more about what went into the music choices for this show.”

* * *

“Let’s go,” Amelia said.

Amelia closed her eyes as the familiar beat began. She took a deep breath and then opened her eyes.

“Driver, roll up the partition, please.” She crooned.

The crowd lost it as she started the number, and Amelia grinned.

“Driver, roll up the partition, please. I don’t need you seeing Ames on her knees.”

She smirked as she sang the changed lyric. She figured that it would be fun to try.

“Took forty-five minutes to get all dressed up. We ain’t even gonna make it to this club. Now my mascara running, red lipstick smudged.”

Amelia couldn’t resist the urge to put a hand on her baby bump as she sang the next line. It was a bit too accurate to how they suspected their kid had been conceived.

“Oh, he so horny, yeah, he want to fuuuhh.” She cut off.

“He popped all my buttons, and he ripped my blouse. He Monica Lewinsky’d all on my gown.”

She couldn’t help herself from taking the microphone off the stand to have as much fun with the song as possible even though she was pregnant.

“Driver, roll up the partition fast. Driver, roll up the partition fast. Over there I swear I saw them cameras flash.”

This was her favorite part. She had forced Aaron to sit on their couch while she rehearsed, and given his propensity for her bum, he never could resist when she tempted him to touch.

“Handprints and footprints on my glass. Handprints and good grips all on my ass.”

Amelia steeled herself as she prepared to change another lyric.

“Private show with the music blasting. He like to call me Baby Girl when we get this nasty.”

Maybe she was giving the audience too much information, but she didn’t care. She was already pregnant. They couldn’t be surprised by the existence of their sex life anymore.

“Red wine drip, we’ll talk that trash. Chauffeur eavesdropping, trying not to crash.”

Amelia readied herself for the shift in song as she finished the end of the song.

“Took forty-five minutes to get all dressed up. We ain’t even gon’ make it to this club.”

Then the musicians backing her shifted the music.

“Cause all of me, loves all of you.”

She giggled slightly at the complete and total shift in mood from incredibly sexy to incredibly sweet.

“Give your all to me. I’ll give my all to you.”

Again her hand found her bump of its own accord.

“Cause I give you all of me. And you give me all of you. Oh.”

She sang the last note and smiled widely as the song finished.

* * *

Amelia couldn’t believe she was doing this again. Practicing any of the Moulin Rouge choreography in heels was one thing. After giving birth to another human being six months earlier, practicing it, and the Can-Can was a whole other ballgame.

“Burning down the house!” Aaron sang along with Sahr and Ricky.

“Burnin.” Amelia echoed as she continued to move.

“Burning down the house!”

“Burnin!” Amelia sang again.

Alex and Sonya stopped the orchestra.

“Great job so far, everyone. A few notes before we continue.” Sonya said.

Amelia rolled her neck as Sonya started to deliver her notes. They were rehearsing for the Tony’s, which were coming up in a few days. But then there was a sudden wail from the back of the theater.

All eyes went to the crying infant as Elin hastened down the aisle quickly. Then the howling started. Amelia knew that sound, and so did her body.

“Shit,” Amelia swore loudly.

She clapped her arms against her chest as her body reacted to her son. Everyone was staring at her after she cussed.

“I’m sorry, everyone.” Elin apologized.

Amelia didn’t wait any longer and hurried over to Elin.

“I’m so sorry, Ames. He started crying, and I couldn’t get him to stop.”

“He’s hungry,” Amelia said, taking her crying baby from Elin’s arms.

“How do you know?”

Amelia looked pointedly down at her chest, and Elin noticed the stains on her shirt.

“Oh.”

“Do you have the bottles still?”

“He drank them.”

“Dammit,” Amelia swore.

She didn’t have much of a choice and looked around helplessly. Aaron, now concerned by the look on Amelia’s face, hurried off stage to his manager and wife.

“Hey, E. What’s wrong, Babe?”

“He’s hungry. Yeah, you are, aren’t you?”

Amelia slipped her pinky toward Jack’s mouth, and he sucked. Thankfully that gave them all a reprieve from the crying.

“Oh. What happened to the-“

“He drank them all.”

Aaron laughed lightly.

“Hey, he gets that from you,” Amelia said, teasing him.

Aaron pinched her shoulder.

“Ow!” She said, not that he actually hurt her.

But then Jack wailed, and Amelia shifted uncomfortably as her chest continued to react. That was when Aaron noticed the leaking.

“We got it, Elin,” Aaron said.

“Alright. I’ll just be over there.” She said, gesturing to a few feet away.

“What are you gonna do?” He asked.

She managed to calm Jack again for a moment as she bounced him rhythmically.

“I don’t have time to pump.”

Aaron’s eyes widened.

“So you’re gonna-“

“Breastfeed in the middle of rehearsal? Yeah. I don’t really have a choice.”

“Aaron. Amelia. You guys ready to go?”

Jack was starting to get restless again, and Amelia knew she wouldn’t be able to wait much longer.

“Uh, not quite Alex,” Aaron said.

“What’s wrong?”

“He’s uh hungry,” Amelia said.

She couldn’t help the blush from rushing to her face. At least the fellow mothers on stage looked sympathetic.

“Can’t you just give him a bottle?”

“Uh, no. I can’t.”

That was when all of the mother’s on stage looked really sympathetic.

“You’re going to-“

“Breastfeed during rehearsal? Yup.”

“Seriously?” Alex asked with slight irritation in his tone.

“Back off, Alex,” Aaron said defensively.

Amelia sat down gingerly in one of the upholstered chairs, Jack jostling slightly as she did so, which made him howl again. Her chest clenched painfully again, and she winced noticeably.

“I love you, Alex, but mother nature waits for nothing. Not even Tony’s rehearsal.”

Despite her bravado, she felt incredibly uncomfortable. But she didn’t really have time to dwell on it.

“Come on, Alex. Let’s move on to something else in the meantime.” Tam said.

Amelia smiled gratefully at her friend, and he gave her a wink. She knew Alex didn’t mean to be short. He was just stressed.

“Babe?” Aaron said quietly.

“Yeah?”

“It’s ok. Just turn your back to the stage and take the t-shirt off.” He said.

Amelia tried to stand up with Jack in her arms, but Aaron took him to make it easier for her. Aaron cooed as Jack fussed.

She did as he suggested, turning her back from the stage and pulled her shirt off. Aaron winced when he saw how wet her bra was.

“Does it hurt?”

“Enough.” She said with honesty.

Aaron reached a hand to her bicep, cradling Jack against his chest, and spun them, so he was shielding her from the cast behind them.

“Sit. I’ll cover you.”

She sat down slowly as Aaron shielded her with his body. She watched him as he shrugged his long purple “Christian” coat off one arm, switching Jack to the other hand, before shaking the coat towards the ground. It dangled from his wrist, and he flung it at her.

It smacked her in the face, and she huffed.

“Shit! Sorry, Babe.”

Some of the cast on stage laughed.

“Yo! Privacy, please!” Aaron yelled, mostly joking.

“I didn’t think you would literally cover me.” She said.

He rolled his eyes at her as he sat down next to her. Amelia readjusted his coat and undid her bra.

“Ready?” He asked.

She nodded as she held up the coat. Aaron slid Jack down the skin of her chest. She took him in her hands as Aaron held up the coat again so she could see what she was doing. She shifted Jack into position until he finally found purchase.

“Oh, thank God.” She said, moaning in relief.

Aaron laughed at her, and she gave him a side-eye look. He just kissed her temple and rested his head against her shoulder.

He moved the coat slightly so that he had a better look at his son.

“I love watching you do this.” He said quietly.

She smiled sheepishly at him.

“It’s embarrassing having to do it here.”

“Don’t be embarrassed. Besides, if anyone has anything else to say about it, they’re gonna have to go through me.”

“Just as well cause he inherited your appetite.”

She turned to face him as she teased him, and he growled playfully at her. She squeaked into his mouth in surprise as he suddenly kissed her deeply.

“Aaron. We need you.”

“Alex. Leave them be.” Robyn said.

Aaron sighed lowly, so only Amelia could hear him.

“No, it’s fine, Robyn. I’m coming.”

Aaron stood up as Amelia shuffled Jack to her other breast.

“Duty calls.” He said, bracing his hands on her knees.

“I get it. Can you just come back and help when I’m done?”

“Will do.”

Amelia went back to paying attention to their son, but then Aaron startled her by putting his finger under her chin.

“Hey. I love you a lot.”

“I love you too.”

“Good.” He said.

He kissed her languidly, and when they broke apart, she just wanted more.

“See you up there, Mrs. Tveit.”

* * *

Amelia had to be up at the crack of dawn, which was just as well, seeing as she had barely slept anyway. Miles whined as he sat in front of the bedroom door, which Amelia opened.

“Miles, no!” She whisper shouted.

He took off like a bullet toward the living room. Amelia sighed heavily and continued to wander groggily to the kitchen.

She filled the coffee pot with grounds and water, flicking the switch, so the wonderful sound of brewing coffee filled the room. She was examining her emails when the sound of a second pair of feet came closer to the kitchen. She was hoping vainly that maybe Miles wouldn’t wake him up.

She could feel his eyes on her, but she refused to look. He, on the other hand, was experiencing some serious mental whiplash. He wasn’t sure how to rectify their argument the night before with the fact that she was wearing nothing but his old t-shirt.

“Amelia.” He said, his voice hoarse.

“I don’t have time to talk about this, Aaron. I have to be at Mary’s in forty-five minutes.”

She turned to check the coffee pot. Damn. It still wasn’t full enough.

“Amelia.”

“What?”

“Will you at least look at me?” He said, frustration in his voice.

She did so and was immediately confronted by his mostly naked form. Her eyes trailed up his legs, past his boxers, along his abdominals, and all the way up to his face. She certainly hadn’t forgotten how attractive he was.

“We have to talk about this. I thought we resolved it last night.” He said.

She nervously played with her wedding ring.

“I thought we did too.”

“Then what the hell happened?!”

“I don’t have time to get into it, Aaron. I really have to leave.”

“So what? I’m supposed to go to the Tony’s tonight and pretend like everything is fine?”

“We’re both excellent actors. I think we’ll be able to compartmentalize.”

“I don’t want to have to compartmentalize.”

“I really don’t have time to talk about this.”

“I heard you the first time.”

Amelia turned away from him to pour herself a travel mug full of coffee.

“What do you want me to say, Aaron?”

“I want you to say what you’re thinking. I want you to talk to me.”

She sighed heavily.

“I don’t have time to tackle this right now, Aaron.”

She grabbed her coffee as he tried to stop her.

“Stop running away from me.”

“I’m not Aaron. Well, I’m not this time anyway. I really do need to leave.”

And so he was left standing there, all alone in his boxers.

Amelia was exhausted. Mary had read her the riot act when she heard that Amelia hadn’t slept all night because of another fight. It also didn’t help that she was shuttled from Mary’s apartment to the theater for a walkthrough, then to a short press gauntlet, and then to the hotel to prepare for the evening.

She was honestly just thankful that she still fit in her Carolina Herrera couture even with all the drinking she had done in the last few days.

“You look beautiful, Amelia,” Mary said, tearing up a little bit.

Her blonde hair was slicked back slightly to show off the dress. Other than some simple gold jewelry, they let the dress do the talking. The only thing Amelia had insisted on was dramatic eyeliner to accentuate her eyes.

“Ready to go?” Mary asked.

“Yeah. Let’s do this.”

On the other hand, Aaron couldn’t stop thinking about Amelia even as he and Mary Elizabeth made their way through the grueling press line. It didn’t help either when Karen Olivo asked Aaron about Amelia.

“By the way, Aaron, congratulations on your wedding,” Karen said.

Aaron had to put on his best face and try not to show any tension.

“Thank you!”

“For those who don’t know, Amelia Hillux now Tveit is in this year’s nominated production of The Crucible. Have you seen it?” Karen asked.

It was an entirely fair and innocent question, but unfortunately, it struck a nerve in the back of Aaron’s mind.

“I haven’t, unfortunately, due to our filming schedule, but I’m incredibly proud of her. She works so hard, and it’s amazing as not only her husband but as her partner of nearly a decade to see her growth and continued success. She’s a genius, and she deserves every accolade that she gets.”

“Aaron never shuts up about her.” Mary Elizabeth interjected.

Her comment brought about levity to the conversation.

“Yeah, I’ve got it bad.” He said, laughing.

But he did mean that. He just wanted to talk to her so they could try and resolve this ongoing fight.

“Well, it was a pleasure speaking to you two. Enjoy the rest of the evening!”

Mary and Aaron made their goodbyes as their respective teams started to shuffle them to the next press stop.

“Aaron?” Mary Elizabeth said.

“Yeah?”

“Isn’t that Amelia?” She asked.

Aaron followed her gaze. He shouldn’t have been entirely surprised when his heart stopped at the sight of her. It was, in fact, his gorgeous wife.

He watched her as she posed for the cameras and winced to himself when he realized that her smile didn’t reach her eyes like it usually would.

“Go. At the very least, you should say hello.”

“You sure?”

“Please. I can handle a few interviews on my own. Now shoo!”

Aaron didn’t need to be told twice. Amelia was right, although he had never disagreed with her point in the first place. It was crazy that they hadn’t been able to go to the Tony’s together for their first year as a married couple. Especially given the unique role the awards show played in their relationship.

Amelia saw the movement out of the corner of her eye but tried not to startle when a hand wrapped around her waist.

“You look amazing.” He whispered into her ear as the cameras flashed.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you on the press line right now?”

“Fuck the press line and fuck the network. They can deal with it for five minutes while I support my wife publicly, which is what I really wanted to do this entire time.”

Aaron turned his head slightly to look at her and smiled to himself when he noticed that her smile reached her eyes again. They got to the end of the step and repeat, and Amelia took his hand. She started to lead him away.

“Amelia! Where are you going?” Her publicist asked.

She growled. She was so sick of having their schedules impact their relationship. She squeezed Aaron’s hand and turned to face her team.

“Five minutes Mary. Please.” Amelia pleaded.

“Five minutes,” Mary said.

“Thank you,” Aaron responded.

“I mean it, Amelia!” Mary yelled.

But they were already gone as Amelia dragged him to a more secluded spot. She took a deep breath as she finally let go of his hand.

“Ok, now I can talk.”

Aaron huffed out a laugh and took both her hands in his.

“Well, first off, you look amazing and so fucking sexy. You made my heart stop.”

“Glad I still have that effect on you.”

“You always have Amelia Tveit. Now what the fuck is going on?”

She shuffled self-consciously. She still wasn’t entirely sure how to articulate her emotions, but she was going to try.

“I’m scared.”

“Of what?”

“That this industry is finally going to break us.”

Aaron’s eyes widened at her statement.

“We’ve been together for seven years, Ames. Why would that happen now?”

“Because we’re married, Aaron. The dynamic is completely different. And don’t get me wrong, I want to be Mrs. Tveit. I have loved every second of it. But it’s so much harder than I thought it would be not to be around you. I thought I missed you when you were away while we were dating, but this is just so much more painful.”

“I feel that too. Karen Olivo asked me if I’d seen the Crucible yet, and having to say no just made me feel like absolute shit.”

“What do we do then?” She asked.

Aaron abruptly dropped her hands and cupped her face in between his grasp.

“Do you want to work through this?”

She swallowed hard.

“Yes.”

“Do you want to be with me?”

“Yes.”

“Do you love me?”

She blinked twice at the question. She knew their fights had been gnarly, but the fact that he even had to ask made her feel awful. She extracted her hand and placed it on his face in return.

“Of course, I love you.”

“Good. Because I love you too, and I don’t even want to imagine my life without you in it.”

“I’m sorry if I ever made you doubt that I love you.” She said, the regret clear in her voice.

“You didn’t. Not really anyway. It’s just nice to hear it sometimes.” He said truthfully.

She felt the tears prick at her eyes.

“Well, I love you.” She said firmly.

Aaron smiled at her and then kissed her deeply. Amelia didn’t care if she ruined her makeup or either of their outfits as she lazily draped her arms over his shoulders. They broke apart when they could no longer breathe.

“You, me. A week-long vacation. Nobody else. No work. Nothing. We’ll talk through the rest of these issues and then enjoy some much needed alone time.” Aaron said.

“Can we leave tomorrow? Oh, and go somewhere with a beach, please?” She pleaded, her hands now gripping his neck.

Aaron laughed.

“I’m sure that can be arranged. I’d love to see you in a bikini right now.”

“You’re such a guy.” She teased.

“Yeah, who hasn’t had sex in three months.”

She nearly went weak at the knees at the thought.

“Oh, God. Sex.” She moaned, bending her knees and arching into him.

She placed a searing kiss to his lips, and he smiled through it.

“Can we please have lots and lots of sex?” She begged.

Aaron curled a hand around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

“Of course. Who am I to deny my gorgeous wife?”

She giggled as his fingers drummed against her hip before their lips met again. Amelia knew Mary would be mad at her for ruining her makeup. But as Aaron wrapped his other arm around her waist, she found that she couldn’t care less.

* * *

“Ladies and Gentlemen, my husband and, more importantly, my baby Daddy, Aaron Tveit!”

Aaron walked out on stage and was immediately shaking his head at her.

“What?” She asked.

Aaron pulled the microphone off the stand and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

“Did you really have to call me your baby Daddy?”

She grinned teasingly at him.

“I called you my husband too.”

Aaron rolled his eyes at her as he took a sip of water.

“Also, did you really have to change the lyrics to Partition?”

Amelia grinned dirtily at him.

“Too close for comfort, Aar?”

His eyes flashed darkly as he registered her words.

“Well, you would know, wouldn’t you?”

The crowd oohed at his comeback, and she laughed.

“No need to be defensive, Aar.” She said.

She patted his chest patronizingly, and he gripped her hand. He yanked her to him so that their lips were inches apart, ratcheting up the tension between them. He surprised her when he simply pecked her lips quickly.

The crowd lost at it at even that simple display of affection, which made Amelia blush.

“I’m not defensive. I just don’t like talking about our private life.”

Amelia laughed.

“What now?”

“Well, Aaron, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m pregnant. I think that clues people into the fact that we have had sexual relations before.”

Aaron and the crowd laughed.

“Speaking of pregnancy, we’re about to get real meta up in here.” She said.

Aaron grinned at her and took one last sip of water. As the first few lines of the music started, they both readied themselves to sing.

“Look around, look around at how lucky we are to be alive right now.”

Amelia initially started to sing to the crowd before she turned to Aaron.

“Look around, look around.” She sang.

“How long have you known?” Aaron interjected.

Amelia shrugged.

“A month or so.”

“Amelia, you should have told me.”

Her eyes widened when he changed the lyrics. He just winked. Hypocrite.

“I wrote to the General a month ago.”

“No.”

“I begged him to send you home.”

“You should have told me.”

“I’m not sorry. You knew you’d fight until the war was won.”

“The war’s not done,” Aaron interjected again.

Amelia stepped closer to him and placed a hand on her bump.

“But you deserve a chance to meet your son.”

They didn’t know the sex of the baby yet. She had just hit five months, but to be honest, they decided to be old school and wanted to make it a surprise. Amelia’s money was on a boy, which was why she chose this song.

“Look around. Look around at how lucky we are to be alive right now.”

Aaron held out his hand, gesturing to the crowd as he sang to her.

“Will you relish being a poor man’s wife? Unable to provide for your life?”

Amelia reached forward and cupped his cheek. She smiled when he kissed her palm.

“I relish being your wife. Look around, look around.”

She turned away from him to sing to the crowd this time.

“Look at where you are. Look at where you started. The fact that you’re alive is a miracle. Just stay alive, that would be enough.”

She turned back to Aaron and cupped his face again, running her thumb across his genuine smile.

“And if this child shares a fraction of your smile. Or a fragment of your mind, look out world! That would be enough.”

She turned toward the audience for the final time as she would spend the rest of the song singing to Aaron.

“But I’m not afraid. I know who I married. So long as you come home at the end of the day, that would be enough. We don’t need a legacy, we don’t need money.”

She faced Aaron and placed her hand over his heart.

“If I could grant you peace of mind. If you could let me inside your heart.”

This was her favorite line in the whole song.

“Oh, let me be a part of the narrative. In the story they will write someday. Let this moment be the first chapter where you decide to stay.”

She held the note as the music swelled. Amelia braced her hand against his neck and could feel his pulse beating rapidly.

“And I could be enough.”

Her hand slipped from his neck to her bump.

“And we could be enough. That would be enough.”

The music shifted to another song, and the crowd realized that it was a medley.

“Why do you write like you’re running out of time?” Amelia sang.

Aaron put his finger to his lips as he shushed her.

“Come back to bed. That would be enough.”

“I’ll be back before you know I’m gone.”

“Come back to sleep.”

“This meeting’s at dawn.”

Amelia threw her arms around Aaron’s neck and pulled herself as close as she could, given the growing bump.

“Well, I’m going back to sleep.”

Aaron couldn’t help but laugh before he sang the last line seeing as that was very much Amelia in real life.

“Hey. Best of wives and best of women.”

He smiled brightly at her as the music played them out. He put his hand on her bump, and she giggled. He pushed forward and kissed her chastely.

“Told y’all we were gonna get meta,” Amelia said when they broke apart.

* * *

“Ready to do this?”

“Nope!” Amelia said.

“Yeah, me neither.”

They pulled up to the red carpet, and they both thanked the driver as Aaron opened the door.

“Here we go.” He said.

Aaron stepped out toward the crowded red carpet and offered his hand to Amelia. She took it and tried to get out of the car as gracefully as she could in her long gown.

She straightened out and smoothed down her bedazzled gown. She had chosen it for its blue ice details that had reminded her of Aaron’s eyes.

Aaron waffled their fingers together and made their way toward the long line of photographers. Elin and the rest of Aaron’s team swarmed them for a moment before they began the gauntlet.

Amelia just tried to stand there silently as she was there strictly as Aaron’s date, not as a professional. It was nice for once to be out of the spotlight.

“Now you can go,” Elin said.

“Yes, thank you for your approval, oh all-powerful Elin,” Aaron said sarcastically.

And with that, he led her away. The flashes were blinding as he let go of her hand and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“Be nice to Elin. She’s just doing her job.” She whispered in his ear.

“I know.”

Amelia curled a hand against Aaron’s stomach gently, subtly showing the world and the cameras that he was hers.

“I know you’re nervous. Don’t be.” She said quietly.

“I’m trying.”

She patted his dress shirt lightly and separated herself from him so that the photographers could get photos of him by himself. They weren’t there to see her. It was Aaron’s time to shine.

She made her way to the end of the press line and found Aaron again.

“I know I said it in the hotel room earlier, but you look stunning tonight,” Aaron said when they reached each other again.

“Thank you. This dress reminded me of your eyes.”

Aaron smoothed his hands along the jewels that covered her hips and wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Are you flirting with me, Ms. Hillux?”

She had a sudden flashback to the first night that they met, very much in a similar situation. When she looked up at him, she could tell by his facial expression that he had said it on purpose.

She wrapped her hands around his neck as she curved her body into his.

“Just a smidge.”

He snorted but was cut off when she kissed him. They broke apart, and she was glad to be wearing nude lip gloss.

She smoothed his tie back down into place and reluctantly pulled his arms off her hips.

“C’mon. Elin’s gonna get mad at you if we don’t keep moving.”

“Hey! You kissed me first.”

She looked at him cunningly.

“Yeah, but Elin’s never going to believe that. You’re always to blame.”

“Oh, you little-“

“Aaron!”

Their moment was interrupted by a male voice.

“Hey, Hugh!”

Aaron retook Amelia’s hand.

“Let’s go, say hello.” He said to her.

Amelia followed behind him as they made their way toward the Australian.

“Hey, mate! How are you?” Hugh greeted.

He and Aaron shook hands, and then Aaron kissed Hugh’s wife’s cheek.

“I’m good! This is crazy! Oh, sorry, Babe.”

Aaron squeezed Amelia’s hand, and she shuffled out of her hiding spot from behind Aaron’s shoulder.

“Hugh, Debra. This is my girlfriend, Amelia Hillux.”

“Oh, from Anything Goes!”

Amelia’s eyes widened.

“Uh, yes. That’s me! A pleasure to meet you both.”

Amelia shook both of their hands, still starstruck.

“You were wonderful during your performance at the Tony’s. And your production was magnificent. You certainly deserved the win.” Hugh said.

Amelia snuck a shocked look at Aaron, who just beamed at her.

“I-thank you. That’s very kind of you.”

“Is this your first time at the Oscars?” Debra asked.

“Yes, for both of us,” Aaron said.

“I’m so excited you all were nominated. The movie made me cry several times.” Amelia said.

Hugh smiled kindly.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’m sure Aaron will agree that this film was a labor of love.”

“Very much so. Lots of blood, sweat, and tears. And in my case, actual blood once.” Aaron said.

All four of them laughed.

“Well, enjoy the rest of your evening Ms. Hillux. Aaron, I’ll see you on stage.”

They bid Hugh and Debra goodbye and made their way down the carpet. When they were alone or alone as one could be during a red carpet, Amelia freaked out.

“Oh, my God. Aaron!” She exclaimed.

He was trying not to laugh at her as she lost it. She tried to resist the urge to pull against the lapels of his suit, not wanting to ruin it. So instead, she settled for moving her hands around frantically.

“Hugh Jackman knows who I am. Oh, my God.”

Aaron laughed as he pinned her wrists together in between his hands.

“Hugh fucking Jackman, Aar.”

“I know. You’re more famous than me.” He said, teasing her.

She scoffed in jest. Once upon a time, that would have been something he said bitterly. But now, things were so different. She was happy to know they were in such a good place.

“Hey, I’m not the one invited to the Oscars as a nominee. You’re about to surpass me, handsome.”

She cupped his sharp jaw in between her hands, and his dimples popped as he smiled widely.

“I doubt it.”

“I don’t. Plus, I’m excited to just be the arm candy now.”

“Incredibly sexy and talented arm candy.”

She caught sight of Elin barreling towards them over Aaron’s shoulder and hastened to kiss him before they were both chastised.

* * *

Aaron was tracing patterns into the skin of her bare legs with his fingers, marveling at the silkiness of her skin.

Amelia sat firmly in his lap as her feet dangled over the arm of the patio chair. She talked animatedly with her father as the fire raged in the pit next to them.

Aaron had flown up from Florida for a brief Memorial Day weekend trip with Amelia and her family. Neither of them had been to her parents’ home in the while, so it was a nice change.

Amelia went to drink her beer and whined loudly when she realized it was empty.

“I need a new beer.” She said.

She turned her head to Aaron as she pouted noticeably.

“Go get one then.” He said.

She pecked his lips and stood up.

“Dad. Beer?”

“Sure, honey. Thanks.”

“Aar?”

“Yeah, I’ll take one.”

She grasped one side of his face as she kissed the other cheek and then made her way back toward the house.

Aaron sipped what was left of his current beer as he stared at the fire.

“So, how’s work been, Aaron?”

“Good! Grueling schedule, though. It’s been hard to be away from Amelia for so long.”

“I’m sure she feels the same way. But you’ve both been very good about understanding each other’s schedules.”

Aaron downed the last drop of his beer as he steeled his nerves.

“Well, I’m actually glad she left. I’m not entirely sure when I’ll be able to talk to you alone again.”

Aaron leaned toward her father as he tried to resist the urge to vomit.

“I know we’ve talked about it in the past, Ryan, but I love your daughter.”

Amelia’s Dad nodded, picking up on Aaron’s serious tone.

“So this is me formally asking for your blessing to propose.”

Ryan’s eyes widened slightly.

“This weekend?”

Aaron had a momentary flash of panic at the thought.

“Oh, no! There’s just not enough time with work and everything to enjoy it.”

“When are you thinking you’ll propose?”

“In the next couple of weeks. I’m going to try and take off work so I can surprise her a bit.”

Aaron watched nervously as Amelia’s father shifted in his chair.

“Of course, you have my blessing Aaron. You make her very happy, and it would be wonderful to have you as my son-in-law.”

Aaron breathed a sigh of relief.

“I know it’s a bit old school to ask, but I know it will mean a lot to Amelia. It means a lot to both of us, actually.”

“A little bit of advice?”

Aaron nodded eagerly.

“Try not to be too nervous. She’ll say yes. I know she will. I remember being almost paralyzed when I proposed to Cynthia, and in the end, it all worked out obviously.”

Aaron laughed.

“See rationally, I know she’ll say yes, but I’m still anxious.”

Ryan laughed, remembering the feeling.

“I assume you have a ring?”

Aaron beamed.

“Want to see it?”

“You have it on you?” Amelia’s father asked in surprise.

“No, definitely not. She’d find it in a heartbeat. I actually hid it in my dirty socks.”

They both laughed. Aaron pulled up the picture and handed his phone to Ryan.

“It’s beautiful. She’ll love it.”

“Thanks,” Aaron said gratefully as he took his phone back.

And only a few moments after Aaron took his phone back, Amelia returned with three beers in her hand.

“One for you, Dad.”

She walked over to her father and handed him the beer. Then she made her way to Aaron, taking back her previous spot in his lap.

“One for you.” She said, handing Aaron the beer.

“And one for me.” She said.

She smirked at Aaron as she sipped her fresh beer. Aaron just laughed at her.

“So, did you two behave while I was gone?” She asked.

Aaron and her father exchanged looks.

“Why do you always act like I’m going to grill him, Amelia?”

“Call it intuition.”

Aaron went back to tracing shapes on her bare thigh.

“It was fine, Babe. We just talked about work.”

“Oh. Did you tell him that you can shoot a gun now?”

Aaron rolled his eyes.

“That’s what you focus on?”

“I mean, I can’t do it.”

“I’ve offered to teach you, and you’ve dodged it every time.”

And with that, Amelia’s father chose to leave them to their own devices as they bickered/flirted.

* * *

Amelia couldn’t stop herself from staring at Aaron, her book forgotten now. She pushed her sunglasses down her nose and surveyed him as he walked toward her.

It had been a few days since they had fled New York after their massive blow up in the days leading up to the Tony Awards. Thankfully, everything was back to normal. They had made sure to spend the entire first night just talking. Aaron did not want their issues to linger any longer, seeing as they both had lost a lot of sleep over the fights.

Amelia, meanwhile, was just happy that he was receptive to what she had to say. It was reassuring to know that she wasn’t wholly overreacting. He had been struggling as much as she had in the last seven months.

Their reunion the next morning had been nothing short of mind-blowing. She had to keep the flashbacks at bay as she watched the sun sparkle across his skin as the seawater dripped off him.

“Take a picture; it’ll last longer.” He said when he finally reached her.

He sat down beside her on the beach blanket and stretched out his legs. She rolled her head slightly to look at him, sunglasses still perched on the edge of her nose.

“I would, but it won’t do you justice.”

Aaron raised an eyebrow at her response.

“Are you flirting with me, Mrs. Tveit?”

“Is it working?” She asked.

He laughed as she played along with him. She went back to her book, reveling in the warmth of the sun. She didn’t notice he was still staring at her until she felt his finger trace the bite mark on her left butt cheek. She flinched as it was still tender. The sudden movement caused her black bikini top, which she had untied to avoid tan lines, to shift.

“What are you doing?” She asked.

“Nothing.”

He was very obviously not doing “nothing” as he rolled his finger from the first bite to the one he could just see on the inside of her thigh.

She flinched again, and he laughed.

“You know I think you’re the only man I’ve ever met that would ignore the fact that I’m basically topless right now in favor of my ass.”

“What can I say? I like what I like.”

Aaron moved so that he was on his stomach and pressed himself against her side. He pushed the hair that was falling out of her braid and sticking to her slick throat. As he pressed a kiss to her neck, he could taste the seawater, sweat, and sunscreen that covered her skin. On the other hand, she could smell all of that and feel the bulge growing in his thin swim trunks.

She enjoyed the feeling of his lips on her skin until his fingers drifted to the ties of her bikini bottoms. She slapped his hand.

“Now, what are you doing?”

“You know exactly what I’m doing.”

He latched his lips to the sensitive spot underneath her ear, which he knew always sent her spiraling. He went back to the tie on her hip and managed to partially undo the knot.

“Oh no, you don’t.” She said.

She rolled away from him, leaving her top behind on the blanket. She didn’t bother to cover up as she stared up at him.

“Babe. It’s a private beach and a private villa. There’s nobody around us for at least two miles.”

“I know. I’m not worried about voyeurs.”

Aaron’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“Then what’s the problem?”

“I don’t want sand in my hoo-ha.”

Aaron burst out laughing.

“What the fuck is your hoo-ha?”

“You know. My hoo-ha. Nether regions, vagina, pussy, you name it.”

Aaron shook his head at her as he bent down to place a searing kiss against her lips. He almost had her as he slipped one hand over her breast while the other went back to the strings of her bikini.

“Fuck. I mean it, Tveit.” She said, continuing to curse profusely in her mind.

She cracked open one eye, and the view above her was breathtaking. His hair was still damp and was plastered to his forehead. But it was his eyes, despite their now black color, that were shining in the sunlight.

She took a deep breath as she tried to control herself. It was incredibly distracting to feel his throbbing member against her body.

“Besides, I’m not exactly groomed down there.”

Aaron barked out a laugh.

“Have you already forgotten how many times I’ve eaten you out in the last two and a half days? I really don’t care what it looks like.”

“Yeah, but I do cause it’s gonna be itchy as fuck with the sand.”

Aaron sighed heavily.

“Fine.” He groaned.

But the next thing Amelia knew, she was being lifted bodily from the blanket and thrown over Aaron’s shoulder.

“Aaron! Oh, my God!” She yelled.

He carried her toward their villa as she watched the blanket get further and further away. He surprised her even more, when he smacked her ass.

“Ow!” She whined.

“That’s for the sass.”

She just grumbled angrily against the small of his back, making him laugh again. He carried them through the living space, past the kitchen, and into the bedroom, made up now. But he didn’t stop until they reached the bathroom.

He flipped her so that she was right side up and placed her on the counter. He walked away from her and started the shower.

“There. Now you can’t bitch about the sand getting everywhere.”

She gasped in faux offense at his language.

“Asshole.” She said.

But her words didn’t match her actions as she reached for his arm and yanked him to her. He smiled devilishly as she kissed him. It didn’t take long for the shower to heat up, and Amelia soon found herself being lifted from the counter. Aaron closed the door behind him and cupped her face as he kissed her.

The water pounded against the back of her head, slowly drenching her hair, which was still gathered in a messy braid. The hand that wasn’t on her jaw slid down her body and finally untied her bikini. It plopped onto the shower floor with a slight splash.

She winced when he poked the bruise on the inside of her thigh again.

“Stop doing that.” She grimaced.

He pulled back to look at her for a moment. Her pupils were blown wide, her cheeks were flushed between the sun and her arousal, and the water that pounded the back of her head ran in rivulets down her face.

He moved his hand from her jaw to her braid and yanked the tie from her hair. His fingers deftly undid the braid. She stared up at him, and he gently pushed the sopping hair behind her ear.

“I love it when you look like this.” He said softly.

“What? Sex-crazed?”

He hummed in agreement as he kissed her again.

But now it was her turn to repay the favor, and so she pushed him out from under the water. He hissed when his back hit the cool tiles. However, he was distracted from the sudden change in temperature as she undid his swim trunks. Like her bikini bottoms, his suit plopped loudly as it hit the water.

She caught him by surprise, though, when she dropped to her knees.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

She smirked up at him as she gave him a solid tug, making him gasp.

“You know exactly what I’m doing.” She said, throwing his earlier words back at him.

And she wasted no time in making him break down above her. He immediately tangled a hand in her hair as she alternated between kitten licks and languid strokes.

It took everything he had not to collapse. She was so fucking good at this. It had always been his weakness when it came to her, and she knew it.

As he teetered on edge, he became more aggressive. He pulled tighter against her hair and forced her to take him deeper. She gagged around him but breathed through her nose as she refused to stop.

That alone caused him to break, and he came down her throat, groaning loudly. She released him, and he opened his eyes just in time to see her swallow.

“How are you so fucking good at that?” He asked, still panting.

She shrugged from her spot on the floor.

“It’s a talent.”

Aaron helped her up from the floor and kissed her again. They took their time washing up, helping each other as neither could keep their hands to themselves.

Amelia couldn’t stop giggling as the pads of his fingers skated along her chest.

“You’re all pruney.” She said.

She gave him a firm peck and reached over to turn off the water. He stared at her ass as she stepped out of the shower.

“You coming?” She asked.

He could see through the fogged-up glass that she was drying herself off. He followed her and was immediately hit in the chest with a towel.

“Was that a pun?” He asked.

She blinked at him in surprise and then burst out laughing hysterically.

“Oh, no. No pun intended.” She said, still giggling.

He shook his head at her as he rubbed the towel against his hair. He stepped closer to her, and her eyes dropped to his lips. She desperately wanted to kiss him again, but she tried to hold the tension a little bit longer.

“Did you think I was done with you?” He asked.

His hand slid past her collar bones, down between her breasts, past her navel, and stopped just short.

“I was hoping you weren’t.” She said with honesty.

He kissed her brusquely and lifted her up again for the third time that day. Even though she expected it, she still squeaked in surprise. He tossed her onto their bed, pulled the towel out from under her, and threw it out of the way.

“We won’t be needing that.” He said.

She chuckled as he kissed his way up her leg, the stubble from his chin scratching her skin. His nose bumped the sore bruise once again, and she hissed. She felt him smirk against her leg and went to the opposite thigh, biting there.

“Shit.”

The painful feeling didn’t last long as pleasure suddenly overtook it.

“There. Now you match.”

He looked up at her from his spot between her thighs, and she was glaring at him. He just grinned as he nudged his way further north. She started to lock her legs closed, a bit embarrassed by the state of her privates.

Aaron pried her legs back apart.

“It’s fine, Ames.”

“I know. Sorry, it’s just a habit.”

“I told you. I don’t mind.”

And then his lips were on her clit, causing her to gasp loudly. She was already so sensitive from the last hour or so of stimulation that she nearly came undone with every slight move of Aaron’s mouth.

“Aaron.” She mewled.

She tangled a hand into his hair as his tongue darted into her.

“Fuck!” She swore loudly, nearly screaming.

Aaron laughed darkly, and the vibrations went straight through her sensitive body.

He went back to her clit as he curled two fingers into her. He clearly hit just the right spot at that moment because then she was coming around his hand, moaning loudly.

He crawled up her body and kissed her. She was still panting, which made him smile into the kiss. He pulled away from her, and she pushed his hair off his forehead.

“Want to keep going?” He asked.

“Yeah. Condom?”

He nodded and kissed her forehead. She watched him as he stood up and went to his suitcase, rummaging through it until he found the condoms.

He shook his head at her when he realized she had propped her head up in her hand so she could stare at him.

“Didn’t anybody tell you it’s rude to stare?”

“Hate to break it to you, Aar, but I couldn’t give two shits.”

She kept staring as he knelt on the bed and rolled the condom down. He pushed her shoulder gently so that she was on her back. He brushed her hair out of her face so that he could kiss her fiercely. That was just as well because when he pushed into her, a cry ripped through her.

Aaron rolled his hips into hers rhythmically as she met his pace. She could feel the tension building, but she didn’t want to lay on her back anymore. She wanted to force him to watch what he did to her.

She pushed herself up, and Aaron readjusted as he wrapped his arm around her hips. The fact that they managed to move without Aaron sliding out of her was miraculous. She shifted her hips, and he slid deeper into her, making her mewl.

Aaron brushed her hair out of her face with both hands.

“Hi.” He said.

She gulped down a breath as she tried to speak, face to face with him now.

“Cat got your tongue, baby girl?”

She opened her mouth to respond, but then he moved his hips again, and she let out a string of curse words.

“C’mon, baby girl. Come for me.”

Amelia tried to take back some agency as she slammed her hips down on him. It was his turn to groan loudly.

“What? Cat got your tongue, Aar?”

Aaron glared at her and reached a hand down to the nub between her legs. The smirk completely left her face as her body took over, and she came around him.

Aaron kept moving, trying to reach his own climax, as she gasped in his ear. It didn’t take him much longer. It certainly helped when she regained her poise and pressed a searing kiss to his lips, her tongue sliding into his mouth.

She giggled into the kiss as he groaned loudly into her mouth. Eventually, they both pulled away when neither of them could breathe.

Aaron kissed her chastely as he moved them, so they were laying on their sides, face to face. Her wet hair was stuck to her face, which Aaron tried vainly to move once again.

“We’re gonna get water all over the bed.” She said, her voice noticeably hoarse.

Aaron cupped her cheek with his left hand, and she leaned into it.

“I’m sure there’s a dryer in this place somewhere.”

He kissed her again and began to slide out of her.

“No!” She protested.

She moved her limbs so that she was clinging to him like a koala, holding him inside her.

“Babe.”

“Just a little bit longer. I like how it feels.”

Aaron’s eyes, which had returned to their standard blue shade, widened in surprise.

“Dirty girl.”

She blinked at him with big doe eyes, trying to get him to bend to her will.

“Fine. Few more minutes. This damn condom is uncomfortable.”

She kissed him in thanks, making him smile.

“So how weird is Brain Dead going to be exactly?”

“Pretty weird. I mean, I know I’ve mentioned it to you, but how did you know to ask about that?”

She blushed.

“Mary might have been eavesdropping on your interview with Olivo.”

“Unbelievable.” He said, amused.

She shrugged, which was no easy feat with her arms wrapped firmly around him. Aaron shifted against her and couldn’t take it anymore.

“Alright. Time’s up. I can’t take it anymore.”

She whined but acquiesced. Thankfully he didn’t take long and was by her side again.

“Yeah, but Brain Dead is really weird. There’s uh a sex scene with a salami, actually.”

“A salami?”

“Yeah.”

Her brow furrowed in confusion.

“So not only am I going to have to watch you do a sex scene, but a salami is involved?”

“Pretty much.”

She was silent for a moment.

“Right. I’ll be watching that one through my fingers. You can just tell me when it’s over.”

Aaron laughed.

“Switching gears, though, I have excellent news.” He said.

She flexed her toes against his shins as she smoothed her hands against his chest.

“Do you?”

“I might be coming back to Broadway.”

Her face lit up in excitement.

“What?? Really?”

“Yeah. Elin told me on the DL that they’re bringing Moulin Rouge to the stage.”

“The movie?”

Aaron nodded.

“Wow. Finally. So you’d go for Christian?”

“Mmmhm. I don’t think I’d make a very good Argentinian.”

“Ha. No. Definitely not.”

Aaron pulled her tighter to him, needing her body warmth as the chill started to set in.

“Yeah, so Elin’s working her ass off to make sure I get a shot.”

“You’d be an amazing Christian, Aar. You’re very good at that head-over-heels, puppy love persona.”

Aaron smiled softly at her.

“I’ve had a lot of practice in real life.”

She rolled her eyes at his cheesiness and smattered his face with little kisses.

“Ugh. Aar, that would be amazing if you got it.”

“I know. Go back to my roots. Come home to you.”

Her eyes flashed at his words.

“You’re not doing this just because of me, are you? Like after everything that happened in the last few months?”

“No. But it’s a very nice perk. The opportunity is amazing, but I’m also ready for things to be a bit more stable for us.”

She smiled brightly as he kissed her.

“You know. You’d make an amazing Satine.” He said.

“You think?”

Aaron dragged a hand from her jaw to her chest, tweaking her nipple. The action caused her to arch her back, pressing her body into him.

“I know. You’re very good at the whole sex appeal thing.”

She was trying to control her heavy breathing as his hand remained on her breast.

“Only you see that side of me.” She said.

She whimpered at his ministrations as she started to lose her train of thought.

“I think it would be fun to do a show together.”

She made a noise of acknowledgment as her eyes rolled back into her head.

* * *

Aaron took one last look in the mirror before he turned to Amelia.

“Well, how do I look?”

She stepped to him, her long sheer gown with ice blue crystals swishing as she moved, and straightened out his bowtie.

“Very revolutionary. And handsome.”

“Thank you.”

He pecked her lips. She rubbed some lip gloss off his mouth and plucked at the red pocket square.

“I really like the red. It’s a nice touch.”

“I thought so too. God, I’m so nervous.”

She cupped his sharp jaw in her right hand.

“Don’t be nervous. You’ve done this a million times.”

“Yeah, but not at the Oscars.”

She gripped his jaw harder.

“Hey. You got this, ok? Worst comes to worst, just picture me in my underwear.”

“That won’t help. That’ll just be distracting.”

“Not thinking of your nerves now, are you?”

Aaron’s eyes lit up as she smiled slyly.

“You’re a genius.”

“I try.” She said nonchalantly.

There was a knock at the doorway, and the couple turned to see Aaron’s manager standing in the door.

“Amelia, it’s time.”

“Ok. Thanks, Elin.”

She turned back to Aaron and hugged him hard.

“Break legs.” She said.

She pulled back to look at him, and he had lost a bit of his color again.

“I love you.” He said.

“I love you too. You’re gonna kill it.”

He nodded and kissed her.

“Amelia. Seriously.”

Amelia giggled as Aaron snuck in another kiss before Elin dragged her away.

10 minutes later, Amelia was nervously tapping her high-heel clad foot against the theater floor as she waited for their performance to start.

Then the music finally began, and Amelia beamed as Hugh Jackman made his entrance.

“Suddenly, you’re here. Suddenly it starts. Can two anxious hearts beat as one? Yesterday I was alone. Today you are beside me. Suddenly I see what I could not see. Something suddenly has begun.”

She sucked in a breath when Anne Hathaway made her appearance.

“One day more. Another day, another destiny. This never ending road to Calvary.”

Amelia nodded appreciatively to herself. Hathaway was excellent.

“These men who seem to know my crime will surely come a second time. One day more.”

“I dreamed a dream in times gone by. When hope was high and life worth living.”

“One day more.” Hugh sang.

Then Eddie Redmayne and Amanda Seyfried emerged from the opening.

“Tomorrow you’ll be worlds away. And yet with you, my world has started.”

Samantha Barks, Amelia thought, looked amazing. She had been so good in the film, so she was ecstatic to see her perform live.

“One more day all on my own.”

“Will we ever meet again?”

“One more day with him not caring.”

“I was born to be with you.”

“What a life I might have known.”

“And I swear I will be true!”

“But he never saw me there.”

Samantha held the note as she moved slowly out of the way. The music swelled, and Amelia bit her lip, waiting nervously for Aaron’s entrance.

He strode out onto the stage with a quick pace. He looked so serious, and she smiled widely as she realized he had slipped into character.

“One more day before the storm.”

Aaron looked out onto the crowd as Eddie followed with his own lines.

“At the barricades of freedom.”

Amelia tapped her feet excitedly as Aaron nailed his vibrato.

“Will you take your place with me?”

Aaron held the note as the rest of the cast and ensemble continued with the new lines.

“One day more.” Hugh Jackman sang.

Amelia couldn’t stop beaming as Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, and the ensemble joined the rest of the cast on stage. Amelia knew she should have enjoyed the other performers, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Aaron.

“One day to a new beginning. Do you hear the people sing?”

The rest of the cast continued with the song as Aaron crossed the stage for the song’s final part.

“Tomorrow we’ll discover what our God in heaven has in store. One more dawn. One more day.”

Amelia stopped breathing as they sang the final line.

“One day more.”

It was a fantastic performance, and Amelia couldn’t stop herself from cheering loudly. She and Elin looked at each other, both grinning.

Amelia turned back to the stage, and Aaron was absolutely beaming. He looked so excited as he scanned the crowd. He finally stopped searching when their eyes met. She cupped her hands around her face and yelled loudly. Her reaction caused him to smile even wider, if that was possible at this point, his dimples clearly on display.

The audience eventually retook their seats, allowing the program to continue. Amelia had to try and calm her emotions as she waited for him to return. She had to maintain some level of decorum.

As Aaron returned, Elin stood up and hugged him hard. Amelia couldn’t hear what they were saying, but the same grin from when the number ended was still plastered to Aaron’s face.

He slid past Elin, patting her arm, and sat down next to Amelia. He didn’t want to stand in anyone’s view. Amelia turned her body to him and threw her arms around his neck. He kissed the top of her head as she burrowed her face into his neck.

She pulled away, and he was still grinning.

“You were amazing.” She said excitedly.

She kissed him enthusiastically.

“Mmph.”

He made a noise of surprise at the strength of her kiss. She pulled away and pecked his lips one final time.

“Seriously. That medley was beautiful, and you were-I don’t even know what to say.”

Aaron’s grin shifted to a smirk.

“Wow. Amelia Hillux is speechless?”

She pushed his shoulder.

“Jerk.”

Aaron leaned forward and kissed her softly.

“Thank you for being here.”

He stroked her cheek with his thumb in affection.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Tveit.”

* * *

**And Baby Makes Three.**

**@ameshillux and the baby are happy and healthy. Thank you all for your love and well wishes.**

Amelia marveled for the millionth time at the breathtaking black and white photo of Jack gripping Aaron’s finger with his tiny hand.

“Your post is still doing numbers, you know.” She said.

Aaron looked up at her as he pulled a baby beanie onto Jack’s head.

“So is yours.”

“Is it?” She asked.

She launched her own Instagram to see that he was right. The likes and comments were still ticking up on her post. She had used the same photo he had but had posted a slightly different caption.

**And Baby Makes Three.**

**I love you and the nugget so much @aarontveit**

“Oh yeah, you’re right.”

“Usually am.”

She scoffed at his arrogant response. She could just see his smirk as he snapped Jack into the car seat.

“I’m just surprised given that this is a few weeks old.”

Aaron shrugged as he picked up the seat by the handle.

“People like babies.”

Aaron offered her his other hand, and she took it.

“And celebrities.” She said.

Aaron snorted as she locked their door.

“We’re not celebrities.”

“As much as we wish we weren’t Aar, both of our follower counts beg to differ.”

Aaron just grumbled angrily to himself as she laughed at him. Amelia strapped Jack into his car seat and sat in the front next to Aaron, who was driving.

She was thankful that it didn’t take long to get to the Al Hirschfield theater. Jack, clad in his Moulin Rouge onesie, was starting to get fussy.

Amelia followed Aaron through the familiar hallway to his dressing room and was surprised when they didn’t see anyone. Granted, that was alright with Amelia as Jack was throwing a fit.

“Oh, I can smell him from here,” Aaron said as he emerged from the bathroom.

“Yeah, someone did a shit. Yes, you did.” She said, cooing at Jack, who was squirming.

“I got it,” Aaron said.

He took his son from Amelia, holding him at arm’s length.

“Whoo boy. That’s one stinky baby.”

Amelia laughed as Aaron opened the baby bag.

“Seriously, Babe. I got it. Go, say hello to everyone.”

“You sure?”

“Yes. Let Dad work his magic.”

She rolled her eyes but left the room anyway. This was the most put-together she had felt in weeks. She was still wearing yoga pants and a comfortable top, but she had at least washed her hair and put on makeup.

She went to the door immediately next to Aaron’s first. She knocked on it, and it opened almost immediately.

“Oh, my God! Amelia! Look at you!”

Karen engulfed her in a hug, her boundless energy infectious.

“How are you doing? How are you feeling?”

“I’m good, Karen. It’s so nice to see another adult again.”

Karen laughed.

“Tired of only having Aaron to talk to you?”

“A bit. Both our mother’s just left, so it’s just us now.”

“Wait! Is Jack here?”

Karen’s face lit up at the thought.

“Yeah, he’s next door. Aaron’s changing his diaper.”

Karen all but flew out of the room and hurried next door. Amelia followed close behind her. When she entered, Aaron and Karen were talking energetically.

“Awww, he’s wearing the onesie,” Karen said.

Amelia walked over to Aaron and tickled Jack’s tummy.

“It was a great gift from you all. It made me cry when I saw it.” She said.

“Everything makes you cry right now.” He said.

Amelia glared at him as the two Moulin Rouge stars laughed.

“Well, he looks great. You both do. Are you getting any sleep?”

Amelia laughed bitterly. 

“Sleep. What a concept.”

Karen smiled sympathetically.

“Can I hold him?” She asked.

“Of course. Mind washing your hands?” Aaron asked.

“No problem,” Karen said.

And then they were alone again.

“How are you feeling?” Aaron asked.

He reached for her hand and squeezed.

“Pretty good. I don’t know how long I’m going to be able to stay.”

Aaron squeezed her hand.

“That’s fine with me. I just need to chat with Alex and everyone for a bit before we go.”

“I can’t believe you’re going back to work next week.”

Aaron looked a little guilty.

“I know, Babe. I’m sorry. But you know you’re welcome to hang out here. We should also see if your Mom will come back in a few weeks.”

Amelia sat down on the couch next to him and rested her head against Aaron’s shoulder.

“Alright. I’m ready.”

Karen sat down on the couch as Aaron stood up and handed Jack gently to her. He fussed a little at the movement but then settled as he stared at Karen.

“Wow. He’s got your eyes, Aaron.”

“I know. I’m still not over it.” Amelia said.

“With you two as parents, he’s going to be quite the looker.”

Aaron laughed when there was a sudden commotion outside the door.

“Oh my gosh! It is you, Amelia!” 

Holly appeared in the doorway with Robyn and Ricky behind her.

“Hey, guys!” She said, greeting them cheerfully.

“And you brought the baby! Oh my Gosh!” Holly said excitedly.

Aaron stood up.

“Alright, alright, people. One at a time.” He said.

The noise in the room rose as more and more people came to say hello.

“Guys. You can come to say hello but keep it down. Jack doesn’t like the noise.” Amelia said. 

She took a fussy Jack from Karen’s arms, singing softly to soothe him.

An hour or so later, Amelia had just finished feeding Jack, placing him in the bassinet they had stashed in Aaron’s dressing room. She readjusted her nursing bra and looked at her watch. Aaron had to be nearly done with his meeting by now.

“Hey.”

Amelia startled awake.

“Jack?” She asked in a panic.

“He’s fine.”

“Oh, good.”

She let out a yawn.

“I think it’s time I get you sleepy heads home.”

She looked over at her son to see that he was asleep too. She was too tired to help Aaron as he moved Jack from the bassinet to the car seat.

“I would carry you, Ames, but one of us is going to have to deal with the little guy.”

She yawned again.

“It’s ok. I’ll manage.”

She took the seat from Aaron, trying not to wake their baby. Amelia left the dressing room, and Aaron locked the door behind them.

He surprised her when he threw an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into him so he could kiss her.

“Hey.” He said quietly.

“Hi. That was nice.” She said, still a bit surprised.

Aaron kissed her again, and Jack jostled slightly against her leg.

“I love you.” He said.

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> also lol remember when we thought 2021 was gonna be better?? Joke's on me/all of us


End file.
